Banned: Finland, UK, Chile, Iceland, Ireland, Brazil, Australia, Norway, Singapore, Sweden Tobe Hoopers directorial debut shocked the whole world with its depiction of unremitting horror. The film has a reputation for being very gory and gruesome, but actually most of the violence is implied or happens off screen. What the film does have is buckets full of unrelenting terror and this terror is sustained throughout the movie, growing more acute as the movie goes on. Of course Leatherface murders some young dumb teens with a mallet and a chainsaw but it is the plight of the character Sally in the film which really grabbed the attention of global censors. Her ordeal at the hands of the worlds most messed up family is excruciating viewing as she escapes, is recaptured, endures the dinner from hell, jumps out of a window, gets chased through woods by Leatherface waving his customary chainsaw all over the place. So it is pretty high octane stuff. The film was actually given a theatrical release in Britain but was pulled from the cinema by chief censor Stephen Murphy and banned on the recommendation of the BBFC. When James Ferman took over Murphys role, he upheld the ban on TCM throughout his time at the BBFC. Like The Exorcist, TCM was a personal bête noir of Fermans and he never countenanced its release. It was not until 1999 that the film was awarded an 18 certificate. TCM ran into problems in countries all over the world it was particularly disliked in Australia and had to be slashed to ribbons in order to secure a release in that country.
My first film watched was Carrie aged 2 on my dad's knee. Educated at The University of St Andrews and Trinity College Dublin. Fan of Arthouse, Exploitation, Horror, Euro Trash, Giallo, New French Extremism. Weaned at the bosom of a Russ Meyer starlet. The bleaker, artier or sleazier the better!
