The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

DVD Features:

Audio:

• Dolby Stereo 2.0
• Dolby Stereo 5.1 Surround

Additional Release Material:

• Never Before Seen Bonus Material

Description by OLDIES.com:

It has been called "grisly," "sick," and "perverse," as well as "raw," "unshakeable," and "the movie that redefined horror." It was attacked by churches, banned by governments, and acclaimed by only the bravest of critics. It stunned audiences worldwide and set a new standard in movie terror forever.

In 1974, writer-producer-director Tobe Hooper unleashed The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, a dark, visionary tale about a group of five young friends who face a nightmare of torment at the hands of a depraved Texas clan. Today it remains unequaled as a landmark of outlaw filmmaking and unparalleled in its impact as perhaps the most frightening motion picture ever made.

Dark Sky Films presents The Texas Chain Saw Massacre like you've never seen or heard it before, newly transferred in High Definition from the 16mm camera originals, remixed in 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo Surround, and featuring never-before-seen Bonus Features produced exclusively for this definitive collection.

Product Description:

THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE is, without a doubt, the granddaddy of all splatter films. Inspired by 1950s mass murderer Ed Gein, Tobe Hooper's debut feature opens with five unsuspecting teenagers driving in a van through sun-scorched rural Texas. After a terrifying exchange with a demented hitchhiker, the group ends up at an old farmhouse. At first, the house appears to be abandoned, but soon, the evil residents begin to wreak havoc on the youngsters' lives. With her friends and wheelchair-bound brother Franklin (Paul A. Partain) disappearing one by one, the terrified Sally Hardesty (Marilyn Burns) must summon the strength to escape from the ghoulish family of mass murderers, who are led by the gruesome, chainsaw-wielding Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen).

Hooper's low-budget exploitation horror film became a cult hit and favorite midnight movie that helped define the splatter genre by introducing such standard features as the house of terror, where innocent victims meet horrible ends, and the girl in peril who survives the mayhem to become the heroine. Spawning several sequels, as well as a 2003 remake, THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE remains an untouchable work of sheer terror that continues to shock audiences all over the world.

Plot Synopsis:

The granddaddy of all splatter films. Five teenagers driving through rural Texas stumble onto an old farmhouse which turns out to be inhabited by a ghoulish family of mass murderers. Chainsaws and meat hooks are the tools of these white trash psycho-killers' trade -- they decorate their home with human bones, skin and other gruesome relics, supplementing the body count with corpses from the local graveyard when fresh victims are scarce. It looks like curtains for certain for the teen travellers trapped inside this house of horrors -- unless one scantily-clad female can elude the powertools and survive the night of terror intact.

Plot Keywords:

Black Comedy | Cannibalism | Cult Film | Essential Cinema | Horror | Killer | Murder | Psychos | Slasher | Theatrical Release

Exerpts:

"My family's always been in meat." -- Hitchhiker (Edwin Neal)

Production Notes:

• Theatrical release: October 1974
• TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE was director Tobe Hooper's first feature film.
• The film's estimated budget was $350,000.
• Featured songs by Roger Bartlett & Friends, Timberline Rose, Arkey Blue and Los Cyclones.
• The film was loosely based on the real-life crimes of Ed Gein, which also inspired Hitchcock's PSYCHO.
• John Larroquette makes an uncredited vocal appearance, providing the film with it's unsettling opening narration.

Cast and Crew: