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Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the most influential, terrifying, and masterfully crafted horror films of all time, and an absolute must-watch for any horror lover. Unfortunately, streaming the seminal 1974 indie horror film is about to become a lot more difficult, as it’s tagged with a February 18th departure from Netflix, meaning it’s leaving just as the franchise is pushed back into the spotlight with news that A24 is developing a new television series and movie. The 1974 classic that launched the franchise is loosely inspired by the crimes of murderer Ed Gein and centers around Leatherface, a chainsaw-wielding, mask-wearing member of a deranged, cannibalistic family.
Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre Redefined Horror
There’s no overstating just how influential The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was to the horror genre. After Psycho effectively birthed the modern slasher, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre took the subgenre to new, raw, and visceral heights. Despite there being very little actual onscreen gore, the movie is an insanely nightmarish experience. The 1974 classic relies on the power of horror through suggestion, forcing the viewer’s imagination to fill in the horrific details and creating intense psychological dread and amplifying suspense with a low-budget, documentary-style, and unrelenting, gritty intensity. The movie also established what would become iconic elements of the modern horror genre, including the final girl trope and the characterization of the killer as a more inhuman, masked, and silent force of nature.
