Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (TSC), a film that is supposedly based on a true story, begins with Sally, her brother Franklin, and three others journeying to Sally’s grandfather’s grave after hearing it may have been robbed. Along the way, they make a quick detour at their family farmhouse that results in the brutal deaths of everyone but Sally at the hands of a man called ‘Leather Face’. The opening music from the film made me uneasy but after that moment all of the events were boring and more of a chore to watch rather than a fun experience. Today, one of the main debated topics between critics is if TSC is the best horror film of all time.

Eddie Cockrell from Why ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ is the best horror movie ever made claims that the TSC film was the gateway for other maniac killers like Freddy Krueger and Michael Myers. Cockrell also states that

the film’s atmosphere of unrelenting terror is so immersive that it is the power of suggestion, supplemented by shrewdly-chosen camera angles and movement, that make viewers think they’re seeing more violence than they actually are.

Roger Ebert, on the other hand, claims that the film has no purpose and is purely meant to terrify its viewers. Ebert also shares his doubts that the film is based on true events which have been questioned since it first came out.

The author of 0609: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) was less than impressed with the film as well. The author was irritated with the lack of character development and says “I don’t care about the characters and I don’t care when they die.” I agree with this sentiment. When I was watching the scene where Sally was being chased through the woods I was thinking that she should hurry up and die so the movie could be over. If Hooper had developed the characters more the audience would have been more invested.

I did notice that while there was not a large amount of gore on camera but I did know exactly what Leatherface was doing the whole time. When Leatherface kills Franklin the way the camera moves shows that Franklin is being sawed in half but we don’t actually see that him being sawed apart. In spite of not seeing it, everyone knows exactly what is happening. I can see how this would be scary and gory for the ’70s but today this is nothing compared to more recent films with more on-screen violence.

In an article by John Bloom, he states that

Chainsaw was the first real “slasher” film, and it changed many things–the ratings code of the Motion Picture Association of America, the national debate on violence, the Texas Film Commission, the horror genre–but it remained a curiously isolated phenomenon.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is responsible for rating movies before they are distributed to the public. Tobe Hooper originally limited the violence in hopes of giving the film a PG rating. However, the MPAA gave Texas Chainsaw Massacre an R rating. Hooper feared that an R rating would be bad for sales but Texas Chainsaw Massacre ended up grossing 30.9 million dollars on a budget of $140,000.

While I wasn’t a fan of the film I must admit that it was filmed beautifully. Hooper uses color to give off a certain feeling during each scene. In some scenes, there is a darker look giving a feeling of ‘this is not going to end well’ while there would be bright color filters in other scenes giving off the feeling of hope. Most of the film is set in the daylight which is unusual. Near the end of the film when Sally is making her escape there is a sunrise in the background which gave me the feeling that she can move on and that the experience was over and that she had survived.

 

Deep Red

While I was not a fan of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre I ended up loving this film. Like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Deep Red has beautiful visuals and cool background music. However Deep Red has awesome character development which made the characters much more likable and I was much more invested in the story.

The film starts off with a bang. You can see the shadows of two people and one is being stabbed to death by the other while childlike music plays in the background. Years later a pianist named Marcus Daly witnesses a woman being murdered and begins trying to solve the case with the help of a reporter named Gianna Brezzi. Marcus eventually discovers who the killer is and as she tried to kill him her necklace gets caught in an elevator shaft and decapitates her.

The opening scene gives a good look into what the entire film will be about. I remember getting tense every time the childlike music played or when I saw shadows on the wall. Deep Red also contained more graphic violence than Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Deep Red features a woman being drowned in a boiling bath, a head being crushed by a tire, a necklace decapitating someone, etc. Overall the film was pretty brutal.

Rob Wrigley, the author of the article Deep Red (1975) is a fan of the film and the artistry of the directing. He states that,

The screen is awash in the deep reds of the film’s title. Not only does it spill from the murderer’s victims, but the set design and the lighting is awash, as if never letting the viewer forget the bloody acts that are the heart if the films.

Elaina Patton is also a big fan of the scenery of Deep Red. She compares watching the film to having sex and she claims,

 it was more than the oversaturated hues of blood and black-rimmed, bloodshot eyes that transfixed me.

I felt like every moment of the film was beautiful and perfect as far as imaging and timing. I also enjoyed the upbeat music that played whenever something scary was happening. Unlike in Texas Chainsaw Massacre, this film does not rely on the music to make it creepy or scary. Every scene and event is timed perfectly and it is no wonder the film is given such high praises by most critics.

The trailer shows the perfect amount of each type of suspense used such as the childlike music, the upbeat music, some gruesome murders. Just from the trailer, you can tell that Deep Red is not for you if you are not a fan of graphic violence.

One thing that the director of Deep Red did very well was he kept the audience on its toes. Tyson Wils claims that,

Looking at Deep Red as a thriller, which for the entirety of its duration creates a scary and discomforting atmosphere, is certainly one way to approach it, and is a method other writers have adopted when they have talked about the film as an unrelenting nightmare.

One of the best things about thrillers is that they keep you on your toes so the anticipation builds until even the smallest movement can terrify you. Deep Red is apparently one of the films that inspired that type of thriller which happens to be my favorite so I can’t help but be grateful to the director Dario Argento.

I would recommend that anyone who is a fan of a true thriller film to watch Deep Red and anyone who is a fan of gore watch TSC.

 

 

Sources

Why ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ is the best horror movie ever made

Roger Ebert,

0609:

John Bloom  “They Came. They Sawed.” LTCC database

opening scene

Deep Red (1975)

Elaina Patton

Tyson Wils