The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (The Last Drive-In)

Film Year:  1974
Genre:  Horror
Director:  Toby Hooper
Starring:  Marilyn Burns, Gunnar Hansen, Jim Siedow, Edwin Neal, Paul A. Partain

The Movie

One of the preluds to the 80's slasher craze, like Psycho, that will kind of get lumped into the slasher subgenre, though it could arguably exist outside of it, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is one of the most notorious horror films ever made.  This movie is the story of five friends on a road trip through Texas, where they run out of gas.  Looking for help, they wander into the homestead of a family of cannibals who want to have them over for dinner (lol).

Texas Chain Saw Massacre is very different than most horror films that came before it, and even after it as well.  I myself am more of a Halloween fan, but if I were to give points to Texas Chain Saw, the film is a more visceral experience.  In some ways I admire Texas Chain Saw more because, while both are low budget indie films, Chain Saw is less slickly made and feels dirtier and more in-the-moment.  The film is a triumph of telling exactly the story it wants to tell with a style that enhances it in the right ways.

Texas Chain Saw can wear me down, however, as the protagonist actors can verge on either being bland or whiny.  The paraplegic character of Franklin grows grating as we hear him talk nonstop for half the movie and I find wanting the Massacre portion of the movie to just hurry up.  But the acting on the antagonist side can be just hammy enough to regain your attention in the second half of the film.

It's that second half of the film that really shines, as the film descends into madness and the editing reflects it.  The endless noise and fast cutting of the third act can be unnerving, and it leads to a climax which is nothing but running, screaming, and chainsaw twirling.  If you're into horror films, Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a must see.

The Drive-In

At long last!  After over thirty years of horror hosting, Joe Bob finally hosts what he considers the greatest movie ever made, Toby Hooper's Texas Chain Saw Massacre!  How excited is he at this prospect?  Well, Chain Saw runs about eighty minutes, but this episode of The Last Drive-In closes in on three hours long!  There is a lot of love in the room, and Joe Bob has a lot of info to share.  He is so at the ready for this thing that he had already long since written a twenty-two thousand word article on this film decades ago.

Joe Bob calls this film "Southwestern Gothic Geranial Political Horror" and a "Updated Hansel and Gretel," and is in full on defense mode for the film, which he feels hasn't gotten the credit it deserves over time, shooting back at the claims that the film is "artless and crude."  He's also ready to come up to bat for director Toby Hooper, who he feels was never given full respect despite having directed two $100 million hits.  That other film, Poltergeist, was plagued by a rumor that Steven Spielberg ghost directed it, but Joe Bob sets the record straight on that aspect, claiming that Hooper was fully on deck for it as Spielberg only spent a day on second unit which was blown out of proportion.  Most of the final segment to this episode is Joe Bob's eulogy to Hooper, and it's from the heart.

As always, Joe Bob delves into cast and crew trivia, most of which had short lived careers after Chain Saw, as it was so detested that it was considered a "resume killer."  He heaps praise on Marilyn Burns, dubbing her the original "Final Girl."  He talks a bit about Paul Partain as the obnoxious Franklin, and muses that the cast thought he was that obnoxious in real life on set.  Most of the cast didn't seem to think much of this movie, either calling it "a goof" or just considering it something they'd rather forget.  On set stories can be amusing, such as make-up artist Dorothy Pearl baking pot brownies on the final day, getting Gunnar "Leatherface" Hansen stoned just before operating a chainsaw.  He also discusses how Toby Hooper originally was trying to edit this movie "so kids could see it."

Outside of film talk, Darcy let's the whole world know she loved the gory remake more, and leaves Joe Bob speechless.  Meanwhile, Joe Bob uses this film (and it's climactic dinner scene) to open his "Dinners of Death" Thanksgiving marathon, and he spends the intro reminding us all the true meaning of Thanksgiving:  Bigotry.  I'm more than ready to feast on three more movies.  Bring them on, Joe Bob!

Joe Bob's Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐