THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE SPECIAL EDITION
Pioneer Video
1998 (Original film released in 1974)

review by Beth Kattelman

LEATHERFACE LIVES! And he looks better than ever in this special edition DVD. Loosely based on the grisly murders committed by Ed Gein, this is the "granddaddy" that inspired a whole generation of filmmakers. Marilyn Burns screams her way through eighty-four minutes of pure, rip-roaring terror. Director Tobe Hooper supervised this digital transfer of the film and it looks and sounds great. The colors are restored and the soundtrack has been digitally remastered to provide stereo surround-sound.

The DVD includes a lot of special features, including a full-length commentary by Director Tobe Hooper, Director of Photography-Daniel Pearl, and none other than Leatherface himself, Gunnar Hansen. This is the first time these three guys have been back together since they finished making the film and it's really great to hear them reminisce about the wild experiences they had trying to get it completed. They do a good job with the commentary, even though there are some details about the filming that they can't quite remember. You can't really blame them though, since the film was made twenty-eight years ago. (Can you believe it? Time flies when you're having fun.) There¹s also a lot of other great extras on the DVD including deleted scenes, trailers and sequel trailers, bloopers, and close-up film footage of the props.

One amazing thing about this film is that you think you see more than you actually do. Director Tobe Hooper uses editing and sound to trick your imagination into creating the horrors. Yes, there are some extremely gruesome images, but there's surprisingly little blood. It's really the sound effects that do most of the work. The combination of screams, metallic scrapings, growls, chainsaws revving and music put you on edge and keep the tension high throughout the entire movie. I do wish that the DVD contained more information about the recording of this amazing soundtrack because I think it's one of the most effective uses of sound in any horror film. But, that not withstanding, this is still an excellent DVD. It was actually the very first DVD I purchased for my collection, and I wasn't disappointed at all. I recommend you get yourself a copy. Any self-respecting horror fan shouldn't be caught dead without it!

FEAR FACTOR: Oh yeah! It's scary! There's even something in the animated menu that'll give you a start.---

BLOOD & GORE GAUGE: Surprisingly little blood actually shown--but your imagination takes care of the rest.---

COOLEST THING ABOUT THE DVD: The Special Features, which show deleted scenes-including the infamous scene where Leatherface puts on his make-up.---

TRIVIA TIDBIT: That's real blood in the grandpa finger-sucking scene. Hansen really cut Marilyn Burns's finger!---

BEST "OW, THAT'S GOTTA HURT" MOMENT: Bare back being jammed onto meat hook---

BEST QUOTE: I just can't take no pleasure in killing. Just some things ya' gotta do. Don't mean you have to like it.---

Official Website:
http://www.pioneer-ent.com

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