Rating: 
Summary: Saw Has Always Been King
Review: In 1974 cartoonist SR Bissette (of Swamp Thing) was in charge of the campus film program at Johnson State College in Johnson, Vt. He was an is my best friend, and we've done much professional work together, but it all goes back to the buzz about a great horror flick we'd heard back then; Bissette managed to secure a print for projection in the college's Dibden Auditorium. In our early 20's and die hard film and horror buffs, we promoted Saw's coming, and a packed house of over 500 stoned college kids sat down for those remarkable opening credits. At the climactic height of the screen as art teacher named Howie Romero (not George) started a chainsaw in the exacted middle of the theater. Bissette and I were in the projection booth, and I looked down at the main floor to see an ever widening circle of vacant space spread from the center of the theater, leaving Romero standing there having a little Homelite (he had smuggled it in under a trenchcoat). After the pandimonium died down, we resumed the film. For the next two weeks Leatherface lurked in every dark closet, every dim alley on campus, not just for me, but for half the campus. I devoted the next several years in compiling and writing The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Scrapbook, the single handmade copy of which I recently sold in a flea market in Florida for $20. Saw is, and always has been, the most well crafted and inspired film in the horror genre, and poor old "Pubie Hooper" (so nicknamed for his alledged propensity for [the relationship]with his females leads, especially in Lifeforce) has yet to achieve the pure inspiration of filmmaking again. And Kim Henkle is the real unsung hero of this movie, along with Gunnar Hanson, who's years of bitterness finally gave way to a reunion of the recent DVD commentary. Saw it a truely great and landmark piece of cinema, and perhaps one of the two or three truely terrifying movie experiences available.
Rating: 
Summary: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Review: This is the original, quite different from the 2004 version. I've seen them all except,Leatherface - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. I guess I need to see this one also. In reallity I am dissapointed. There was never a chainsaw massacre! Ed Gien, never used a chainsaw and the 2nd movie depicts his charactor according the the way he really dressed and looked, except his face was not disfigured. I was dissapointed with the remake 2004 version, cause with the original at least there was a sense of truth to it. The whole thing just turns out to be a big Hollywood lie, all the commotion and fan fair just doesnt do anything for me since I found out the truth. Now if this had been true, I'd be excited about the story's not because I like the macabre type things but because somebody told the truth!
Rating:
Summary: A tried & true classic.
Review: Well, where to begin? When you hear the three words "Texas Chainsaw Massacre," the first thing that must come to your mind is carnage, blood, guts, gore, madness, mayhem and every adjective that fits in between. And if you are expecting the biggest bloodbath ever to grace your TV screen, I am sorry, you will be gravely disappointed. However, what Tobe Hooper's original "TCM" has to offer is a charming, low-budget and influential horror flick that manages to be rather unsettling without utilizing gallons of blood (I'm sure it doesn't hurt that Hooper was going for a PG rating; sounds odd, but it worked for "Jaws"). The movie starts off with five young adults on a road-trip to Texas who, after picking up a disturbed hitchhiker, find themselves under the knife...err..chainsaw, of a cannibalistic family. The deaths and torture scenes are rather grisly when you consider the era this movie came out. It's easy to see why this shocked a lot of people in 1973, it displays macabre images very dryly and makes no apologies, which could be a tribute to the cast & crew's suffering on set, due to heat and props that just would not work (check out the commentary for some wild stories). Is it as shocking now, in 2004 and it was in 1973? Probably not. No doubt, any kid who picks this movie up today will probably be scratching their heads, but when you consider the time it was released in and the massive influence it has had on pop-culture (not just spawning three sequels and a remake...), you have to appreciate the efforts of Tobe Hooper and company. Just remember, Leatherface came before Jason, Michael or Freddy, and any horror fan will be able to appreciate what this film was trying to do. It is truly a maddening and unsettling experience when all is said and done. Definitely a case of making something out of virtually nothing. The DVD is great. Not only do we get an informative commentary from director Tobe Hooper, Cinematographer Daniel Pearl and the original Leatherface himself, Gunnar Hansen, but we get deleted scenes and alernate scenes of every variety. Make no mistake, these are very grainy and very old, but some of them are very fascinating to watch. Another treat would be the trailers for this film and all of the sequels that followed (Part 4, however, is just a collection of raw footage). The version that I reviewed (which I own), released in October of 1998, isn't any different from the "new" version on shelves today.
Rating:
Summary: Best Horror Film Ever
Review: Tobe Hooper's film proves that a film can be horrific and terrifying without having to be overly bloody. The film may take a while to get started (about a half hour) but until then it fills you with a feeling of dread that doesn't go away and once the fun begins you find out that your feelings were justified. You watch as situations go steadily downhill and the dread gets worse by the minute. Leatherface is truly terrifying as the psychopathic killer who lives out in the Texas countryside with his psychopathic family, whom these people just happened to cross paths with. That's the thing, the main characters in the film accidentally ran across Leatherface and he doen't like company. The ominous fate of the main characters is terrifying leaving you with a "did I just see that?" type of feeling. What proceeds to happen when Leatherface and family capture the last survivor is extremely disturbing and I can't emphasize that enough. It is very hard to sit through, it keeps pushing and pushing you until you feel like you can't take watching this film another minute and then when you think you can't handle it anymore you're pushed over the edge of the cliff. The first time I saw the film I was so shaken that I immediately went outside and had to have a cigarette to calm down. And I don't even smoke. Anyone who says this film is any les then one of the most absolutely terrifying films of all time doesn't know what they are talking about. I definately recommend this for anyone who wants to be scared out of their minds.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely unforgettable...
Review: I first saw this movie about eight years ago when I first started getting into horror films. I still have yet to see a film like this. Some horror movies get you with the "zingers" (when something pops up in the frame), some get you with eerie atmosphere and some get you cerebrally. But this... this is just downright uncomfortable to watch. And I love getting that feeling when watching a horror movie. It means the film is doing it's job right. Right from the first frame (which is still, to me anyway, the sickest establishing shot in cinema history), you're hooked. And what follows is a pure nightmare. During the climactic chase sequence, Sally hobbles, not runs, from Leatherface. A cliche way to explain this is to have the heroine either sprain her ankle or get her leg cut up by the killer. But in TCM, she's in such shock that her knees simply buckle out from under her and all she can do is try to out-run this manic for dear life. No cheap tricks. No predictable gimmicks. Simple dread. Admittedly, this cat-and-mouse scene does last a little long, but that's what I love about it. Sally becomes so worn out that YOU become worn out. But you won't shut it off because you're pulling for this girl to get away. And just when she thinks she does, things go from bad to worse. The acting ain't great and the budget is low. The real talent behind this film is the director, who will forever be cemented as a legend in this genre. Poltergeist, Schmoltergeist. This is Tobe Hooper's magnum opus. Accept no substitutes or REMAKES. The five most influential horror movies ever made are Psycho, Night of the Living Dead, Halloween, Scream (for better or worse) and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Check it out.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty damn f*cking good...
Review: This movie has an interesting story & its not boring at all... I loved every scene and my fav actor was ofcourse leather faceee!!! Good scary scenes with original plot...This movie was too original! Buy it!
Rating: 
Summary: waaaaaaay too overrated
Review: Honestly this movie is not nearly as good as many people say it is, and these are my reasons: 1} some scenes are unrealistic - when leatherface starts sawing Kirk into pieces, there is no blood shown at all, now i understand that Tobe may not have wanted too much gore but in other scenes blood is shown (eg. when leatherface slams kirk with the hammer). another unrealistic scene is when laether face saws at franklin while Sally just stands there screaming her head off, i mean, any idiot would run like hell at that very second but she just stands there like some sort of retard. 2) some scenes are just too long- when pam falls into the bones the camera just focuses on the bones for what feels like forever. Another is when leatherface was chasing sally through the woods; 8 minutes of leatherface running after sally, who is just runnning and screaming her head off, waving his chainsaw about. that was one of the most annoying scenes in the whole movie. 3} LeatherFace - that fool didn't scare me for one second, his brother was way more creepy. leatherface is just a big stupid retard that can't do anything but grunt all day, he's always taking orders from his dad and even whimpers when his dad yells at him, now come on, how the hell is a guy like that supposed to scare you, his mask looks like a clown or something. Maybe in 1974 this actually scared people, but today, it didn't scare me, although at times it did make me laugh.
the only real reason i gave it two stars was that it introduced a very good idea into modern horror nad fueling the remake which is an excellent movie. take it from me, watch the remake (if you want to call it that, it's actually only loosely based on this), now that movie just HURTS you, and LeatherFace is much scarier in it(oh, and for those of you purists who think that the remake is crap and this is amazing, you really need a lesson in horror; the remake scared me and this didn't, and i watch a lot of horror movies, new and old, including Last house on the Left and House on the Edge of the Park). Think about this review the next time you watch this movie and when you watch the remake.
Rating:
Summary: leatherface = legend
Review: I HADN'T SEEN THE TCM SERIES UNTILL ABOT 5 YEARS AGO. AND I MUST SAY THAT THEY ARE TRULY DISTURBING. LEATHERFACE IS WHAT MAKES THIS MOVIE A LEGEND . THIS MOVIE IS A LEGEND IN CULT HORROR AND U MUST BE CRAZY IF U DON'T LOVE THIS MOVIE!
Rating: 
Summary: The grainy feel...Makes the Film!!!!
Review: Modern, so-called, re-makes usually stink, I haven't seen the re-invention of this film, yet. I have seen this one though, and it's errie filming, in that 16mm hand-held camera type style, ala
Blair Witch Project really added to the effectiveness of the film. This film was also made to allow your imagination to actually frighten you more than they actually showed. This film is ultra creepy, no doubt, and I wouldn't suggest watching it alone late at night. However, in all honesty, it's short on the gore, much like the Shining. In fact, by today's gore standards, it would probably only rate a PG-13. If you like imagining horror more than seeing it, get this film, if not, perhaps you may like the newer version better.
Rating:
Summary: this is a classic
Review: I'll go ahead and say I saw the new texas chainsaw before I saw this one and I honestly thought It was pretty good, but this ones just as good if not better, learface looks awesome in this one but he dosent come out and suprise that much, like the new one, but this one is way freakier, way freakier. there just isnt enough grusome bloody parts in this thouth but its a original so you got to love it. The dvd itself has great picture and sound and what to talk about getting scared just the menu scared me to death when things just pop out of no where. The house and the whole setting itself is wat scarier than this new one. and you gotta love the grandpa in this movie. I really suggest you get htis one and watch it before you go out and buy the new one, because this movie is the movie that is going to tell you if you are a real texas chainsaw fan or not. Dont make the mistake I did go get this movie first. I cant wait to see the second one, and you wont be able to either if you think this movie is as good as I thought it was. So if I talk so good about this movie why did I give it 3 stars is probely what youre thinking, well to be honest I really didnt like the ending. It seems like the people who made the movie just got tired of making the movie at the end, IT just ended really dumn and the people that did this just got lazy at the end like a kid writing a report for his school. P.s the extre features really aint that bad either there is even commentary by leatherface himself!
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