“Who will survive and what will be left of them?” The genius tagline only scratches the surface of how grisly, how heinous The Texas Chainsaw Massacre really is. This classic film shocked audiences when it was released in 1974 and still chills to the bone to this day. I had the pleasure of showing it to Mrs. Manster for the first time and she was genuinely shaken to the core. That says a lot for a movie that old!

Loosely based on the real-life murderer Ed Gein, Chainsaw takes place on the Sawyer family farm. When a handful of road-tripping kids end up at the country home they soon find out what kind of family the Sawyers really are. If you haven’t seen this one yet stop fucking around and MAKE THIS YOUR NEXT HORROR FILM! If you have, then you know exactly what I mean when I say that this fine piece of artistic terror never gets old. From the film’s gritty visual style to its sadistic debauchery, filmmaker Tobe Hooper (Poltergeist, Lifeforce) masterfully crafts a monument to the genre (in only his second feature film nonetheless!). There is no doubt in my mind that this movie will remain a crowd favorite for decades to come.

5 well-oiled chainsaws out of 5

★★★★★