Without an effective villain, the horror film would deteriorate into a banal drama with (if you're lucky) a slight character arc or two. Imagine for a moment Halloween with a wise-cracking jokester instead of the chilling stoicism of Michael Myers. Or, a mischievous goblin instead of whatever that invisible force is in Paranormal Activity. Our fear is directly linked to our intimate - albeit terrifying - relationship with the film's embodiment of evil. Without a strong threat against our moral authority, the horror film is dead in the water, like a boat without an ocean, or a chainsaw without a chain. And thus, I have delivered a smooth segue into that most loveable of classic horror villains, that flesh wearing fetishists we have all come to know and love as Leatherface. As his modest name suggests, this deranged killer wears a mask of human flesh. He treats his victims just like cattle in a slaughterhouse. No discrimination here, meat is meat. He carries a sledgehammer for bashing brains and a chainsaw for sawing lean muscle. He first appeared in the original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), but has become a figure synonymous with hardcore horror and slasher films. So, what makes Leatherface so interesting? After all, if one were to plan writing an article on a specific slasher villain, they would have a multitude of icons to choose from; Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Chucky, Pinhead, Candyman, Leprechaun, just to name a few. However, what none of these characters have that Leatherface does is a wide diversity of interpretation. Looking back at the Texas Chainsaw films, you find that each one shows an entirely new Leatherface with an entirely new set of disturbing traits. Depending on which version of Leatherface most frightens you, you can examine what that Leatherface represents, and in the process unmask what hidden anxieties have been festering inside you surreptitiously. Oh, what joy! Let us waste no more time then. We shall delve into the depraved, marvel at the macabre, and hopefully gain understanding of the unconscionable...
I have a keen, almost obsessive fascination with the macabre. It has lead me from a quiet life growing up in a small town to where I am now; creating horrific works about horrific things in many different mediums including films, short stories and essays. I live life by a simple motto: learn to like the dark, cause eventually, it'll come for all of us (lightening flashes and thunder claps)... but it ain't so bad.
