Making The Texas Chainsaw Massacre involved dedication and hardship. These factors are brought to light in Gunnar Hansen’s book Chain Saw Confidential: How We Made the World’s Most Notorious Horror Movie. For those that haven’t seen the film, Hansen plays Leatherface, a character with no dialogue. Yet as the actor behind the mask reveals there’s more to this creation than a chainsaw and bad manners.

Quite frankly, this tome goes beyond the standard behind-the-scenes backstory. Crucially, Hansen touches upon the subject of crime relative to movie violence. When exploring this issue, he argues that it takes more than a cinematic experience to inspire cruelty. His statements come across as lucid, historically valid and well supported by the evidence. Due to the media and Internet, public perceptions have become clouded. The World Wide Web has allowed more voices to fog the lens. Bringing truth into play, Hansen examines the roots of horror in storytelling. For this, he refers to Freud, Plato, Aristotle, Mark Shelley’s Frankenstein and Bram Stoker’s Dracula to name a few. Above all, Hansen argues that horror movies allow viewers escapism outside the norm. Overall, I agree with his conclusions and appreciate his willingness to open the door for future study.

Apart from clarifying horror’s raison d'être, Hansen has penned one of the most intoxicating movie guides in a long time. For example, his prose style seamlessly conveys the drama, humour and absurdity behind making movies during the 1970s. Looking for similar excellence? I recommend Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th and Seeking Perfection: The Unofficial Guide to Tremors.

In honour of this literary (and cinematic) experience, here’s a poem:

Bones that rattle in the rain,

saw made good by the chain.

Through sledgehammer and cut

five innocents close on rut.

Annoying Franklin in his wheelchair

going into the dark, they dare.

Sally looking for her beloved --

hopefully there, eventually smothered.

Low budget proves key:

not much gore to see.

Gunnar Hansen as squealing killer

taking bloody dues, that’s his tiller.

Run away from that saw wielding maniac,

reaching gas station in a panic.

The hitchhiker whose intemperate ways

leaves others in a daze.

Mostly fine, a solitary scratch

requiring the decent patch.

Not quite the best of the bunch

Though it might… put you off your lunch.