In 1974 Tobe Hooper (Poltergeist) unleashed a film that was an intense study of homicidal madness and psychological horror. It has since become a cult phenomenon and the most successful independent horror film ever made. T... more »his is the first ever comprehensive documentary of the making of this landmark film. It includes in depth interviews with Gunnar (Leatherface) Hanson Edwin (The Hitchhiker) Neal John (Grandpa) Dugan and Jim (The Cook) Seidow. Including footage from the film and never before seen production photos. So sit back and experience the making of a nightmare.System Requirements: Running Time 70 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: NR UPC: 039414510676 Manufacturer No: MTI1067DVD« less
Great documentary on the best horror movie ever made.
05/01/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This documentary interviews Gunnar Hansen (Leatherface), Edwin Neal (The Hitchhiker), John Dugan (Grandfather) and Jim Siedow (the cook). Although the picture quality at times is not completely clear on the VHS version, the commentaries the actors deliver on the documentary is by far the most valuble source of information for any TCM fan out there (besides the additional footage on the DVD collectors edition of TCM). There are good stories shared by the actors that portrays the making of the landmark film an intruiging experience. I highly suggest picking this rare documentary up before it goes out of print!Visit my Texas Chainsaw Massacre web page at http://www.h-3.com/TCM/TCM.html for more information on the film's location and the family house!Tim Harden timh@h-3.com"
Hitch hiker guy is weirder in real life
Matt | NJ | 01/26/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This is basically a movie-making documentary from the perspective of the actors. The entire documentary is made up of interviews and clips from the movie. There are in-depth interviews with the actors who played Leatherface, the hitch hiker, the cook and Grandpa. They speak about how they became involved with the project and their experiences on the set with Tobe Hooper and the crew. Many anecdotes from the shooting of the film, especially highlighting the 30 hour period dedicated to filming the dinner scene, where they describe the greuling conditions they suffered through.
The DVD also includes trailers, previews for some other garbage movies and a short trivia game. It's a decent DVD. Nothing too exciting, but it provides some insight into the making of the film."
Good Documentary
Barbara Morgan | San Diego, CA | 06/18/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When watching this video you will hear what the cast and crew of the film have to say about their experience off and on the set of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. It was very interesting to hear what the cast had to say. They all look so much different than they do in the movie. it was amazing to learn that a young man played the part of the old almost dead Grandpa. I recommend this documentart to fans of the originall TCM."
Could have been better
phsychomaniac | fairhope AL, USA | 08/18/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"well I was in the video store the other day and stumbled across
this documentary. I was looking forward to alot of behind the
scenes stuff but did'nt get it. first off marilyn burns was
not iterviewed and niether was kurk greg or franklin.It was just
gunner hanson,{leatherface} the hitchhiker, and the cook. it really was'nt all that great."
A nice documentary for fans, but even then...
Armando N. Roman | Hillsboro, OR | 05/29/2010
(3 out of 5 stars)
"The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is my all-time favorite horror movie, and I'll even say that it's one of my top 25 favorite movies of all time too. It was the first dvd I ever bought too back in 1999, and I went through all the special features on that sucker the same weekend I got it. Needless to say, I got tons of info out of that thing, what with the deleted scenes, notes and great commentary. So for anyone who did the same thing as I did, or bought the recent Ultimate Edition dvd/blu-ray, is this Family Portrait Revisited documentary worth checking out? Yes and no.
Family Portrait Revisited is a documentary consisting of interviews with the beloved family from TCM and behind the scenes footage from the set while filming. The guys reveal a lot of cool stories from the set, how some scenes were done, and some personal stories that are worth listening to more than once, especially those from Gunnar. However, A LOT of what's said on here was brought up on the commentary track for the TCM dvds, almost to the point where you wonder why they didn't just include what wasn't mentioned as a special feature on that same dvd. Either way, considering the cheap price for this, it's worth picking up if only to have another piece for your collection.
The picture and audio quality is pretty shoddy since this was filmed using average cameras back in the day, and no restoration appears to have been done at all, despite the 'Digitally re-mastered' listed on the back of the box. I actually laughed to myself when I read that after watching the documentary. The audio remained fairly steady, but some interview segments were either very loud or quiet after a scene with regular volume. 'not that big of a deal, but just keep the remote nearby for when it happens.
There aren't any real special features for this dvd. I don't think there's a whole lot that could've been added at the time considering how much was on the first TCM disc, so I can't really hold that against it.
Unless you absolutely need to know everything about the first TCM, and don't already know these stories from reading about them on some of the great sites dedicated to the movie out there, only then can I recommend buying Family Portrait Revisited. It's not that it's bad, just redundant. But still, getting a chance to see Edwin and John not playing their characters is pretty cool, and yes, Edwin is a bit weirder in real life than he was as the Hitchhiker."