The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) - Parents Guide Movie Rating

MPA: R BBFC: 18 Maturity Rating 18+

BBFC Reason: Contains strong violence and horror

Sex & Nudity

none

Part of Sally's shirt has been torn, exposing her back. Couple make out graphically. Full body. Form of nipples visible through a girl shirt. Pam wears a tight fitting shirt and shorts.

Violence & Gore

moderate

Another person is hit in the head with a sledgehammer. No blood is shown. All of the violence in this movie is implied and very little is actually seen. It's all left to the imagination of the viewer Nearly all of the violence is offscreen forcing the audience to use their imagination to fill in the gaps. There are still a few scenes that show very little blood. It still is quite sadistic and hard to handle. An armadillo is hit by a car, and the dead body is seen. Slightly violent, but hardly any blood. An insane man cuts his own hand and another person's arm with a pocketknife. Little blood. A man kills another man with a chainsaw. Absolutely no blood is seen, as the scene is shot from behind the victim and it's dark. There is no splattered blood or any gore and the hit is offscreen. A person is killed with a sledgehammer. Some blood is shown on his chest and his legs are twitching continuously. A woman is hung on a meat hook from her back. No blood or sound effects and the wound itself isn't shown. Then she is forced to watch as Leatherface butchers her boyfriend with chainsaw (the one killed with the sledgehammer first). Very disturbing, but everything is implied. The same girl is later thrown into a freezer, lunges out at her friend, but Leatherface shoves her back in. By the end, one of the protagonists is covered in blood. A woman has her thumb cut open slightly so an old man can drink her blood. Leatherface's mask is an actual person's face, dried after having been removed by him. Despite the film's title, only one person is killed with a chainsaw but is shown offscreen. Most of the kills are offscreen or obscured. A man is run over by a truck, this is the goriest part of the film but it's shot from a distance. Leatherface's own chainsaw falls and slices his leg. A bit of blood pours out.

Profanity

mild

Man says "what the f*"k was she doing there." 1 hard to hear use of sh*t 1 use each of damn, son of a bitch, and goddamn. 2 uses of bitch. Name calling (nap-haired idiots, bitch hog, hippie, fool, etc.)

Alcohol, Drugs & Smoking

mild

Wine and liquor are shown in the background. In one of the first scenes in the movie, a man appears to be drunk.

Frightening & Intense Scenes

severe

In the opening shot of the film, the camera very slowly backs away from a desecrated gravestone. On the gravestone is a rotting corpse that was stolen from one of the graves. Even though the corpse is disgusting, the cinematography can make it seem like a piece of art. This movie isnt graphically violent or gory and theres almost no sexual content, profanity, or substance use, but it still earns an R rating based on how scary it is. Considered to be one of the scariest movies of all time. Rated R for disturbing violent content, aberrant behaviour, and some language The original Texas Chain Saw Massacre is old and grainy, giving it the unique and horrifying feel of realism that it is infamous for. Some of the scenes in which the characters are trapped in Leatherface's house are intense and disturbing, the floors are littered with chicken feathers and human bones and Leatherface has furniture made from human bones lining his house as well Overall, the general tone of the film is very dark, and quite disturbing. Not nearly as violent or gory as it's contemparies at the time such as Last House on the Left or Bay of Blood. The amount of blood is relatively minimal and most of the onscreen violence is obscured. The film relies more on atmosphere and tension to unsettle viewers. The most disturbing part of the film is near the end, in which a character is tormented over the course of what is implied to be several hours and lasts for 10 minutes. There is a scene where hundreds of daddy long leg spiders are crawling around. This may be unsettling for some viewers. The last 20 minutes of the film is extremely disturbing and intense, as a woman is chased by Leatherface wielding the chainsaw (very long scene), then kidnapped by a family of hillbilly cannibals and is tied to a chair. She screams and cries throughout the scene as the family taunts her and threatens to murder her, albeit quickly. Although she escapes, this is probably the most disturbing moment.