*The Texas Chain Saw Massacre* is often remembered as a film about a man with a chainsaw. Oddly, the chainsaw may be one of the least interesting things about it. What still makes Tobe Hooper’s film so horrible is the sense that its victims have accidentally wandered into somebody else’s perfectly functioning system. The first hammer killing is astonishingly abrupt. There is no theatrical wind-up, no villain enjoy…

It’s hard to deny that this is among the very finest and most captivating horror films in existence. The film unquestionably earns its place as one of the best and most significant entries in the genre. What's also remarkable is the story behind how it was made. If you enjoy horror or slasher movies, seeing this movie is essential; there’s really nothing more to add.

It feels like it might be unkind to judge a film so long after its release, yet I have to say I thought this was rather overpraised and frustrating. A group of five people give a ride to a hitchhiker, only to find out he has a fondness for knives and isn't entirely stable. They manage to ditch him and end up at a gas station with no fuel, close to the burial site of the grandfather of "Franklin" (Paul A. Partain), wh…

"The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (1974) is an important, well-known slasher film that manages to be genuinely disturbing and horrific because of its rough, realistic style. While some moments might elicit a chuckle—like when Franklin’s wheelchair rolls down the hill or his later performance in the rundown building—that doesn't negate the fact that it's a serious, unsettling horror movie. In comparison, Rob Zombie’s “…