With its print in the permanent collection at the NY Museum of Modern Art, it truly is a classic of cinema. But Hooper's CHAINSAW is more than just a classic horror film. The fact that the remake's target teen audience (well, at least some of them) appeared to lap it up is just a sad reflection of how far standards have fallen since the heyday of the horror film in the 70's. The 1974 film is the antithesis of the slick, MTV-influenced, cynical cash-in mentality that informed the later remake. Those who have posted here comparing Tobe Hooper's (one and only) masterpiece with the dreadful remake are presumably young children with no real understanding of cinema.
