A Wisconsin murder inspired three of the greatest horror films in cinematic history. Our new movie reviewer takes us into the world of psychos, chainsaws, and fava beans, just in time for Halloween.
By Alan Herrmann
MOVIE REVIEWER
The Halloween season is upon us, which means my family’s annual Halloween film festival has begun. We celebrate the eerie holiday by viewing our favorite horror films, from the classic Universal monster movies of the golden age of Hollywood to more explicit and complex new releases and everything in between. Three of the films we include every year are based on a single real-life source.
In three different decades, three very different films by three different directors with three different filmmaking styles were all influenced by the same true story. In 1957, a timid and unassuming farmer from Plainfield, Wisconsin named Ed Gein was arrested for committing the heinous crimes of murder, grave robbing, cannibalism, and other atrocities like making lampshades, suits, and face masks from human skin. These horrific acts both shocked and fueled the imagination of many Americans and served as inspiration in the making of these films.
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Psycho – Alfred Hitchcock’s first true venture into the horror genre was based on a novel of the same name by Robert Bloch, who based his twisted character, Norman Bates, on Ed Gein. Both had a severe case of mommy issues, keeping their mothers “alive” in their minds through twisted attempts to inhabit or recreate their mothers’ physical selves. Made in 1960, Psycho is often referred to as the first true slasher film, long before the name became more prominent in the 1970s and ‘80s. The film made quite a stir when it was released –for killing off its star, Janet Leigh, before the film was halfway through.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre – Director Tobe Hooper’s shocking and unnerving 1974 classic is strongly influenced by the deeds of the seemingly timid Wisconsin farmer, Gein. Hooper’s main antagonist, known as Leatherface, follows suit with a mask of human skin, but wields a chainsaw and lives, of course, in Texas. He and his extremely dysfunctional (and most likely incestuous) family operate a seedy BBQ spot that’s not serving up brisket or pork, but something further up the food chain while preying on wandering young adults. The film is violent, shocking, disturbing, and incredibly scary, but there is surprisingly little gore.
The Silence of the Lambs – Jonathan Demme’s 1991 film is often referred to as a “suspense thriller” by those who scoff at horror films, particularly when they star the likes of Anthony Hopkins, but let’s be real: this is a damn horror film. After all, Hopkin’s Hannibal Lecter loves his human victuals – like his iconic “liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti” – and Buffalo Bill does enjoy donning skin suits made from his various female victims, again drawing on the legacy of Ed Gein. Like the other filmmakers, Demme doesn’t retell Gein’s story wholesale. He extracts those parts of Gein’s story that embody our deepest fears through not just one serial killer, but two: Lecter and Buffalo Bill.
Mark Twain tells us that truth is stranger than fiction, but truth can also be the inspiration for great filmmaking. All three of these films draw on the true-life story of a depraved individual and elevate parts of that story to cinematic moments that live on beyond the story itself. I encourage you to gather up the family and discover, or rediscover, these films as we celebrate the season.
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