25 Best Horror Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

4. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Release Year: 1974

Written By: Kim Henkel, Tobe Hooper

Directed By: Tobe Hooper

Starring: Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, Gunnar Hansen, Teri McMinn

Don’t be fooled by the 1970s marketing scheme claiming The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was based on a true story. Thankfully, calling it a true story was simply a ploy to get more eyeballs on the movie and the film’s events were simple fiction. But that doesn’t make them less harrowing.

Regarded as one of the best horror movies of all time, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre follows a group of friends who fall into the path of Leatherface, a cannibalistic killer wearing a mask of human skin and toting around a chainsaw. Charming.

The 1974 film quickly gained critical praise and commercial success. Since The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’s release, six more slasher films have been released in the franchise and the original has been restored in digital 4K. The 2003 remake starring Jessica Biel revived the story, but it’s the ’70s classic that stands the test of time.