THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE RETURNS VIA FATHOM/DARK SKY FILMS (8/18)

 

Fathom Entertainment & Dark Sky Films is continuing its grand, gruesome tradition of reshowing its sterling, remastered print of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre this August 18 (Tues) at select cinemas.

The date of the presentation coincides with the plot's fateful day when a group of naive youngsters encountered a most frightful family. 

Though twisted at heart in its stark, documentary-like auara, director Tobe Hooper and his co-writer Kim Henkel manage to keep the 1974, cannibal-ridden carnage to a minimum (i.e. being more implied than not), for The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is, in truth, a study in masterful, high-tension suggestion. 

In this respect, its suspense is visceral and unpretentious (working off the basic, effective notion that its events could happen to anybody who might fall into the wrong place at the wrong time). Call me the odd man out, but I find this unsettling premise (or more so, its execution) so identifiable that it inspires a cozy feeling in me. Maybe this is also because I've come to learn and respect a great deal about the movie and its creators, many of whom have passed on in recent years.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is perhaps best known for one of my all-time favorite fiends, its towering, Ed-Gein surrogate, Leatherface, played by the late Gunnar Hansen. (I had the pleasure of meeting Hansen at a Fangoria convention in the early 1990s, at which time, I'm proud to say, he signed the box top of my Screamin' Leatherface, model kit). In addition to Hanson, the cast includes Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, John Dugan, Marilyn Burns, William Vail, Allen Danzinger and Terri McMinn, with John Larroquette as the narrator. (The movie's bone-chilling sculptures were provided by art director Robert Burns and the sweltering photography by Daniel Pearl.) 

For those who filmed it, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was (and remains) a macabre labor of love, and many rank it right up there with such comparable, grassroots fright fests as Night of the Living Dead 1968, Dawn of the Dead 1979, Day of the Dead 1985, Carnival of Souls 1962, The Hills Have Eyes 1977, Halloween 1978, and the bulk of the Phantasm and Evil Dead franchises. 

(Re)experience the one that initiated the masked-slasher subgenre, and if you've never seen it, now's as good a time as any to get terrorized. 

WISE WORDS:

 

FANGORIA PRESENTS: CAMP SLASHERS

There's a new, Fangoria in town, one that severs mauls and mutilates. It's a 100-page extravaganza called Camp Slashers (available in two imposing covers). 

As one might expect, this spinetingling release tosses the spotlight on the genre's overriding kingpin: Friday the 13th, led by its marauding catalyst, Jason Voorhees. (To supplement such, readers are treated to a nostalgic look at Mr. Voorhees' over-the-top, sleeping-bag kill from Friday the 13th: Part VII: The New Blood.) 

Sleepaway Camp and Fear Street appear, too, along with the legend-fueled The Burning, and then there's the new-fangled Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Maisma and Final Girls. Readers even get a scholarly glimpse at that old, slasher foe, the censorious Hays Code. 

The issue's details are rich; its photos lurid. Camp Slashers is a gruesome throwback to 1980s carnage, a time when the fearsome Fangoria reigned supreme. 

Order a copy for your library or better yet, use it as a guide for your next campground sojourn. It's the ideal way to mark your inevitable ("Ki, Ki, Ki, Ma, Ma, Ma") demise!🗡

https://www.fangoria.com/fangoria-presents-camp-slashers-is-your-ultimate-summer-horror-read/

PINUP TIME: LINDA HARRISON

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MISS MITTENS: SATURDAY NIGHT CELEBRATION (8/8)

This Saturday night (Aug 8), Mr. Lobo will host a very special, Cinema Insomnia, birthday event for his endearing cohost, Miss Mittens, with a showing of two of her all-time, vegetated favorites: The Day of the Triffids (1963) and Prisoners of the Lost Universe on Twitch, OSI74/Roku and Amazon Fire, starting at 10pm.

Many consider the original film adaptation of John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids to be the best. The movie was directed by Steve Sekely (with some hardy help from Freddy Francis), fortified by Bernard Gordon's character-driven script: a plus for any post-apocalyptic adventure. The cast is great, too, helmed by Howard Keel, Janette Scott, Nicole Maurey, Mervyn Johns and Kieron Moore: a veritable who's who in quality, British cinema.

Prisoners of the Lost Universe is a science-fantasy romp directed by Terry Marcel, who cowrote with Harry Robertson. The plot takes off when a couple is catapulted into another dimension, the world of Vonya, where they face a series of strange encounters that include fierce cavemen, subterranean freaks, a menacing villain named Kleel and above all, amazing, scrubland plant life.  

Battlestar Galactica's Richard (Apollo) Hatch (joined by Kay Lenz, John Saxon and Ray Charleson) propels the action, which rolls in the style of an old-time, movie serial.

It should be noted that this episode is Miss Mittens-centric in more ways than one. Beyond the plant-based movies (where her leafy friends are seen), our beloved cohost is left in charge of the proceedings (and through the use of a handy keyboard, makes derisive, pop-up comments throughout), while Mr. Lobo goes off to participate in a Battlestar Galactica playdate. (And to entrench that Galactica element even further, there's a terrific interview with Mr. Hatch that all Galacticans will enjoy.) 

Miss Mittens' official birthday was on Aug 4, but Saturday's commemoration seals the official deal. Please tune in to be part of this wondrous, double-feature event. It'll surely be one to remember. 

FOR THE FUN OF IT:

 

SO LONG, JIM KRUT

Your screen time may have been brief, but man, did it ever pay off in the original Dawn of the Dead! 

Tom Savini's grisly orchestration deserves credit for that moment, too, but your ambling motion sold the scare. 

Over the years, fans appreciated your openness and accessibility, and yes, when it comes to horror history, your on-screen demise holds up with the best of 'em, but we shouldn't mistake Dawn as your only feature, for you can also be seen in Deadlands 2: Trapped, Quattro and Serious Profession. 

There ain't no doubt that you're the stuff of classic legend, Mr. Krut. So long and thanks for the many frightful and heartfelt memories.🧟