Meanwhile At The Dissident Frogman's House

From the Dissident Frogman's Blog

Talking about Leatherface, I noticed a negative user comment on what is among my all time favorite movies ever, «The Texas Chainsaw Massacre» (Dilettante psychoanalyst shouldn't jump to conclusions. Disney's vibrant commendation of merit over nepotism, "The Sword in the Stone", is also part of my all time favs. And yeah, I know about that thing with the sword in a stone that's impossible to handle until you've reached an evolved step of conscience of your true self. Blew you.) at the IMDB:

« tfrizzell
United States

Date: 22 September 2000
Summary: A Total Waste of Film and Time

"The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" may be the worst excuse for a movie I have ever seen. It is vile, disgusting, sick, and ultimately stupid. Based on a true story, the movie deals with a cannibalistic family led by the chainsaw-wielding Leatherface. In the film, four young people are methodically hunted down and disposed of in brutal fashions. This is a pure mess of a film that has no message, no redeeming value, and no business even existing. (...). »


Gee, that's harsh. I bet "tfrizzel" never heard about the French movie industry.

I mean, this is vile, this is disgusting, this is sick and this is stupid. Fundamentally.

But talking about TCM, -- which despite a persistent rumor, is not based on a true story: it's very loosely inspired by the sick bastard, victim of the society fetishist and cannibal serial killer Ed Gein's life as with know it. In fact, Tobe Hooper and Kim Henkel mostly used bits and pieces (No pun intended. Okay, just a... bit... Darn! Forget about it) of Gein's story: the farm of course but also Ed's Human Bones and Skin artisanal furniture. But no chainsaw, no Texas, no hippies traveling in a Volkswagen minibus: Ed lived in Wisconsin, 1950 -- I won't mention the outstanding staging, direction, crappy photography turned into art and serving so brilliantly the ambiance of the movie and therefore its purpose. These are, after all, subject to discussion.

That said, to find "no message" in a 1974 independent movie (the important words are "independent" and "1974") staging a group of hippies suddenly confronted to a bunch of unprincipled wackos focused on the idea of hunting and eating anything that runs on two legs and utterly immune to the virtue of unilateral peace, love (Imagine all the people. In the seasoning bowl) as well as 12 years plus 19 UN resolutions (it's just an example), frankly, one has to watch this movie in a very superficial way.

Or be a former - or "neo" - love loving hippy I guess.

These poor peaceful "methodically hunted down and disposed of in brutal fashions" young people. How sick! How vile! How immoral!

Can you please put down that chainsaw and stop eating the fleshy love children of peace Mr. Leatherface?

Tell you what: I'm afraid the Texas Chainsaw Massacre's message is still cruelly valid these days.