This year marks the 50th anniversary of what is, in my estimation, quite possibly the greatest horror movie ever made: Tobe Hooper’s “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” (1974). Made on a shoestring in the sweltering southern heat by the first-time filmmaker and a cast of unknowns, “TCM” is a true miracle of independent filmmaking. Its grimy, deceptively intricate production design and sun-dappled 16 mm photography give the film the look of a documentary (or perhaps a snuff film), and its extended, nightmarish climax, in which final girl Marilyn Burns tries desperately to outrun the hulking serial killer Leatherface (played by Maine native Gunnar Hansen) achieves a level of terror unmatched in the annals of horror.
In accordance with the film’s magnitude of fame, “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” screens this week in a new 4k restoration at The Brattle Theatre (where it runs Thursday through Sunday as part of the theater’s “Cruel Summer” series) and the Somerville Theatre (where it will screen in regular showings Friday through the Aug. 29). If that’s not enough mayhem for you, the Somerville also screens Hooper’s follow-up, “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2” (1986) at midnight on Saturday. The sequel is a very different beast from the original – a big-budget, deliberately outrageous horror comedy made for the MTV generation – but it is your only chance to see Leatherface battle Dennis Hopper in a chainsaw duel, and for that I will always love it.
Thursday sees another free screening in Somerville’s Gilman Park, courtesy of the voluminous 16 mm collection of Hi-Energy Vintage. This month’s is a true rarity: the 1994 Vermont-shot sci-fi thriller “Time Chasers.” Like “Texas Chain Saw,” “Time Chasers” is a work of regional filmmaking, shot over the course of several years by a crew of scrappy but dedicated New Englanders. “Time Chasers” may well have faded into obscurity had it not been showcased (and, admittedly, mocked) in a fan-favorite 1997 episode of TV’s “Mystery Science Theater 3000.” Despite its cult status, this is a film that almost never screens in public, let alone on actual film, let alone for free in a lovely park where you can enjoy a picnic while watching its time-traveling antics – yet another reminder that we live in a truly special place for moviegoing.
IFFBoston’s “Hot Summer Nights” series continues through the “Erotic ’90s” at the Somerville, with more steamy, occasionally shocking films introduced by local film critics and other notables. On Monday, you can catch “Bound” (1996), the lesbian thriller that introduced the world to future “Matrix” directors Lana and Lily Wachowski, with an introduction by filmmaker Amy Geller. Tuesday sees David Cronenberg’s wildly controversial “Crash” (1996), easily one of the most transgressive films of the series; if I sound particularly excited about this screening, it’s because it will be hosted by none other than yours truly! Stick around after “Crash” for Jennifer Lynch’s “Boxing Helena” (1993), with an introduction by Arts Fuse critic Nicole Veneto, then come back Wednesday for a 4k screening of “Lost Highway” (1997), directed by Jennifer’s dad, David Lynch, and introduced by critic Peter Keough (also of Arts Fuse, as well as the late, lamented Boston Phoenix).
Tuesday would have been the 72nd birthday of Paul Reubens, the comic genius better known to the world as Pee-wee Herman. To celebrate, The Brattle hosts a 35 mm screening of Mr. Herman’s finest hour, 1985’s “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” You likely know the story: Pee-wee’s beloved bicycle is stolen as he shops for his latest batch of novelty items, sending the beloved man-child on a cross-country odyssey filled with biker gangs, phantom truckers and disappointing revelations about the architecture of the Alamo. “Big Adventure” is as madcap and cartoonish as live-action studio comedies are allowed to be, jumping from one giddy set piece to another with the sort of loopy freneticism Pee-wee would become famous for (Reubens co-wrote the screenplay with the late, great Phil Hartman, who would later appear as Captain Carl on “Pee-wee’s Playhouse”). It’s also exceptionally well-made, the feature debut of director Tim Burton (whose background as a stop-motion animator is fully on display) and composer Danny Elfman. The screening gains poignancy in the wake of Reubens’ passing last year after a private battle with cancer, but it’s nearly impossible to watch “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” without a big, goofy smile on your face – or on your breakfast.
The Brattle’s “Summer of Sofia” series ends Wednesday with Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut, 1999’s “The Virgin Suicides.” Based on the cult novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, the film tells the tale of five teenage sisters who mysteriously end their lives in the suburban 1970s. On paper, the story could be the stuff of melodrama, but Coppola’s aims are more idiosyncratic than that; she provides no clear answers to the film’s central questions, instead viewing the sisters as an unsolvable riddle of mid-’70s malaise. Coppola’s film has far more in common with Peter Weir’s “Picnic at Hanging Rock” (1975) than “Peyton Place,” woozy and enigmatic, aided in no small part by the indelible score by French electronic duo Air. It’s as striking a debut as has ever been filmed, and sets the tone for the one of film’s most exciting filmographies – one which, we hope, is still just getting started.
Oscar Goff is a writer and film critic based in Somerville. He is film editor and senior critic for the Boston Hassle and his work has appeared in the monthly Boston Compass newspaper and publications such as WBUR’s The ARTery and iHeartNoise. He is a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, and the Online Film Critics Society.
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