Rating: 3 out of 5

Synopsis: In “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” a group of wayward travelers falls into the clutches of chainsaw-swinging maniac Leatherface and his demented family. The 1974 film is considered the prototype for the “slasher” genre, preceding such movies as “Halloween” and “Friday the 13th” by several years. The Leatherface character was very loosely based on real-life killer Ed Gein.

Featurettes: There are two featurettes on the disc, one devoted to props and set pieces, the other showing how a 20-second murder scene was edited from a variety of different takes and camera angles. Unfortunately, these featurettes seem more like afterthoughts and don’t add much to the overall package.

Deleted Scenes: There is a wealth of deleted scenes and alternate takes, but the footage obviously wasn’t given the restoration job the actual film footage received. Poor video and audio quality make it difficult to sit through the scenes. The disc also includes a blooper reel, showing a surprisingly comedic side of the film.

Commentary: The commentary featuring director Tobe Hooper, director of photography Daniel Pearl and Leatherface himself Gunnar Hansen, is well worth the price of the disc. They provide insight into the technical aspects of the filming and interesting trivia about the crew’s shoestring budget, such as the fact that they only had one working chainsaw to use for the entire filming, and the rundown van Leatherface’s victims traveled in also had to be used to haul equipment.

The Bottom Line: Despite some questionable special features, “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” is essential Halloween viewing. The director’s commentary, as well as video and audio restoration, are blood-red icing on the cake.

– Joshua Haun