Vintage story, familiar characters still resonate through Halloween cult classic

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When “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” screened at midnight Friday at The State Theater, human’s capacity for evil resonated through the streets of Ann Arbor.

Before I go any further: I’m not talking about Jessica Biel’s attempt at a remake from six years ago; I’m talking about the full-on cult classic from 35 years ago. I’m talking about a film that, along with “Halloween” (1978), defined the standards for what a slasher film should be — standards that seem to be sagging as of late.

The premise sounds familiar enough, although it surely was original at the time: A brother and sister pack into a van with three friends and travel across the deserted, dusty roads of Texas.

The siblings seek the reportedly vandalized grave site of their grandfather. They’re low on gas, but the group of five press on to the grandfather’s now-deserted home to investigate.

Their search — and ignorance — leads them to a nearby house where they ask for gas, and in return, get a chainsaw to the skull, compliments of Leatherface.

Leatherface and his huge, almost phallic, chainsaw chop the travelers for reasons that aren’t made clear until the end. And to think — all they wanted was gas.

The characters’ names don’t matter here; you’ll find they’re as disposable as facial pads. One of the most nerve-rattling scenes happens toward the beginning when the travelers pick up a hitchhiker, played brilliantly by Edwin Neal.

The hitchhiker seems innocent at first, but as the conversation continues, the evil within him is rooted out. The scene leaves viewers unsure of the hitchhiker’s intentions, but more importantly, his sanity. Each look he gives and each movement he makes pushes us further and further from our comfort zone — peaking at the moment he pulls out a peculiarly shaped razor blade.

“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” presents itself as fact, referring to the event as “one of the most bizarre crimes in the annals of American history,” during the opening sequence.

We then see camera bulbs flashing, exposing skeletal remains and evidence with each burst of light.

Director and co-writer Tobe Hooper’s documentary approach helps add realism to the story, and it even has created an urban-legend-like haze surrounding the film.

In reality, the movie, which is much like “Psycho” and “The Silence of the Lambs,” loosely was inspired by the crimes of Edward Gein, a serial killer and grave robber from the ’50s.

Sure, there are horny teenagers getting slain left and right, but this was exploitative and daring at the time, not a proven money-maker at the box office.

The twists are convincing enough to draw you into the evil world Hooper creates — too many times a “twist” is outlandish and actually pushes the viewer away.

The gore is graphic, especially for 1974, but it never overtakes suspense as the main thrill.

Meat hooks, chainsaws, pocket knifes, razor blades and sledgehammers serve unconventional purposes in a film that all “slasher” fans need to see, especially before Halloween.

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