Rating of
3/4
Must be Admired for Its Craft, Not Intensity
Franz Patrick - wrote on 12/08/08
The attention to detail this film had impressed me because one doesn’t encounter that often in horror pictures. I can understand why this became a classic because it’s comedic and horrific, sometimes at the same time, and it’s inspired enough to dabble with the macabre. With its brisk pace of slightly under an hour and twenty-five minutes, the moment Leatherface appeared, the film refuses to let go of its audience. There were several highlights in this film and one of them I had mentioned already (Leatherface’s first appearance–the way he shut that door plays over and over in my head): the lead character’s (Marilyn Burns) chase from the woods to the house, Teri McMinn’s fall in the kitchen while the camera looms about and all we hear is the chicken, and the dinner scene when the grandfather was forced to hurt Burns. The last one I will never forget because the man looked about a hundred years old. Scenes like that made the movie really twisted and borderline sick. I can’t say I like the movie in a positive way but it does deserve my commendation because it’s unconventional but somehow all the disparate elements worked. Tobe Hooper, the director, knew what he was doing and his talent jumps out from the movie. All of that said, I still prefer the remake of this film because that one is more structured, had more scenes that made me jump, and it doesn’t abuse the use of women screaming. Moreover, the remake has a strong lead female (played by Jessica Biel) and a more satisfying (but less haunting) ending. The two movies are so different but comparable in many ways… and I respect them both.
