SpLaTtErFeSt 2000
The evening started at 4:30pm, we went into one of the screens to find the cinema full!  We'd see the programme, on our way in, telling us that we'd be seeing a documentry on the making of the 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' then the film, a disscussion with David Hess and Gunnar Hansen, Wes Craven's first ever film 'Last House On The Left' and finally a mystery film.  I had never seen any of these films, i wasn't around in the seventies, or ever been to a film thingy like this.  So it was to be an interesting evening
So before the documentry started the owner of the cinema and Gunnar Hansen came in and introduced it saying a few words etc..  The documentry was really good, it didn't give away all of the story but went into enough behind the scences stuff that if you had seen the film you were still interested in it.  Also they told you about the problems after the film, actors not getting paid, people getting ripped off etc..
The film 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' is brilliant.  It's on of the original horror movies and seeing the documentry beforehand made my admiration for this film even greater, it is a truely scary film.  It was directeed by Tobe Hooper (Poltergiest) stars Gunnar Hansen and Marilyn Burns (whose screams in the film are properly cringing!), it was made back in 1974 is an hour and 23mins long and was banned for a long time, it has only recently been released on DVD and VHS in the UK over the past year.
The storyline is quite simple, a group of friends are in Texas for one reason or another during a heatwave.  They stop near a house and one by one get killed.  You don't see much of any of the killing but the film sets it up so that your imagination doesn't hand you any pleasent images.
After seeing the film one of my friends was feeling quite naseous and was glad that we had an interval.  Gunnar Hansen came back and was joined by this bloke David Hess, who stars in the film we were to see next 'Last House On The Left', they both talked about and told behind the scenes stories about the films they'd done before we had a question and answer session.  After which they signed various things, unfortunately me and my friends hadn't know that they were signing things so we hadn't bought or taken anything for them to sign.  Not to be discouraged we rumaged through our pockets and bag and found a number of Electric cinema timetables various train tickets and some smarties.  Mr Hess and Mr Hansen were most kind in signing our tattered pieces of paper and foolishly believed us when we told them the smarties weren't poisoned.
In their talks, Gunnar Hansen told us about the extreme conditions that he and the other cast had to endure during the filming and the risks that Tobe Hooper took in the filming.  There is one scene in the film were Leatherface puts someone on a butchers block/table thing and he begins to saw, with a chainsaw.  The camera angle suggests that he is sawing this person head off, in truth Hansen was using a LIVE chainsaw, while the actor (not a dummy) was lying in the block/table, Hansen had to saw the table next to this guys neck!  At the end of the film we see Marilyn Burns laughing hysterically, little did you know, she's not acting!  She was so sick of the film and worn out that she was already quite hysterical and that laughter at the end is purely her own outlet of emotion.
David Hess's filming wasn't as much of an ordeal, he talked about working with Wes Craven, who actually disowned the film at one point until it built up a cult following many years after it's release.  He told us about his character in the film, Krug, and how he thinks the character thinks and his reasons for doing what he does.  Krug isn't bad guy he reasons, when he realises how much pain and distress one of the girls is in, after he's raped and knifed her numerous times, he feels sympathey for her and puts her out her misery as it were (he shoots her).  'Last house...' is still a very controversial and shocking film, even by todays standards, it's still banned in the UK although it holds a member certificate so if your a member of a cinema you can see the film.  I have done a little review of it on my 'other fav movies' page, click on the THIS TEXT to go to it.  'Last house...' is a masterpiece, it's the scariest film i have ever seen.  The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) wrote this statement about it's banning:

'The board has concluded that The Last House On The Left is not suitable for cinema exhibition because of the explicit and sadistic sexual violence contained in the film.  This is the second time that Last House On The Left has been refused classification by the BBFC.  The present version refused classification in some four minutes longer than the version offered in 1974, but is still several minutes shorter than the original uncut version.  Although the recent submission was of a cut version of the film, it was found to contain elements which are unaccpetable under the board's published guidelines.  The board asked for further cuts to remove images of the horrific stripping, rape and knife murder of two women.  The option of making additional cuts was offered to the distributor in May 1999 and in September they confirmed that the film was to be resubmitted with further cuts.  After much delay it is now clear that the distributor has declined the option to proceed further.  The board is therefore unable to classify the film in this version.'

Its amazing that a film that was made way back in 1972, that almost 30 years ago, still has such an impact that it can't get past modern day censorship.
Anyways that was all me and my friends saw of splatterfest, by now it was around 1am and we had to be making our way home, another film was shown though the remaining audience was given a choice of two other David Hess film.
To the left if you click on Leatherface you'll go back to the home page.
Back in June of 2000 a little seventies horror night, known as 'Splatterfest' was held at my favourite local cinema 'The Electric' (see my reviews page for info and a link to the Electrics website).  Anyways this Splatterfest fell on my birthday so my friends, very kindly, took me to it.  Well in truth i dragged them along kicking and screaming shouting 'Come along kiddies you might learn something!'