31 Days of Creepy Scenes, #1: The Dance

They've given us nightmares, given us chills, made us cringe, made us laugh, made us gag, and made us stare at the screen in awe: these are the scenes that pop into our minds when we think of great Horror Films, and we love them all.

*We recommend that if you've never seen these scenes before, that you experience them for the first time unspoiled in the movies that they come from, if you can. With that in mind, we'll try to be as spoiler-free as possible while discussing them; try, being the key word here.

On the last day of our month-long celebration of 31 Creepy Scenes from 31 movies that we love to death, we figure that Leatherface was as a good of a choice as any to close things out with.

Long before Freddy, Jason, and Michael ever came to be, there was Leatherface. In 1974, Tobe Hooper's iconic, dead skin mask-wearing, chainsaw wielding, simpleton cannibal took the world by storm; the modestly budgeted Texas Chainsaw Massacre went on to shock moviegoers while making $30 million at the Box Office, which was huge for the time. Four decades, and a countless number of VHS/DVD/Blu-ray sales/rentals later, and that movie is a piece of Americana.

As for Leatherface, well he's one of the biggest Horror Icons of  all time. 

TCM relied more on imagery and suggestion than it did blood to horrify audiences, and Leatherface was the main reason that it was so effective. From the first moment he appeared on screen, he inspired fear and dread, in both his victims, and those who watched them meet their fates. Whether squealing like a pig, bludgeoning someone, chasing someone with a chainsaw, angrily slamming doors, or licking his lips, Leatherface captivated us, in the worst way possible.

His most memorable moment -and that's totally debatable- come at the end of the movie, when he realizes that the pretty girl was getting away, and he couldn't stop her.



The reason that Leatherface's dance has always stuck in our mind as sharply as it has, is because what the hell is he doing? Sure, he's pissed off that Sally got away, but seeing him dance around like that with his chainsaw always felt more like something he did because he was insane. Angry and feeble-minded, sure, but bat-shit insane.

What a disturbing, jolting way to end a movie. Bravo, Tobe.