Chain Reactions Documentary Brings the Legacy of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre to NYC and LA
- Horror Movies Uncut
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
CHAIN REACTION Brings the Legacy of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
to NYC and LA
Around this time last year, we had the privilege of catching Chain Reactions at Beyond Fest, and now audiences everywhere will finally have their chance. Directed by Alexandre O. Philippe (78/52, Memory: The Origins of Alien), the acclaimed documentary offers an extraordinary, in-depth exploration of Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and its lasting grip on global cinema.
Fifty years after Hooper’s classic shocked audiences and redefined horror, Chain Reactions investigates its cultural and artistic impact through the voices of five major figures: Patton Oswalt, Takashi Miike, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, Stephen King, and Karyn Kusama. Each offers vivid personal memories and reflections, tying their own creative journeys to the film’s radical influence.
Philippe crafts a dynamic narrative that blends contemporary interviews with never-before-seen outtakes, while examining how shifting audiovisual formats—16mm, 35mm, VHS, digital—continue to shape the way we remember Hooper’s masterpiece. The result is not just a history lesson but a cinematic deep dive into how a scrappy, low-budget horror film permanently embedded itself into our collective imagination.
Already a decorated title on the festival circuit, Chain Reactions won the Venice Classics Award for Best Documentary on Cinema and screened at Telluride, Sitges, BFI London, San Francisco, Karlovy Vary, Fantastic Fest, and Beyond Fest.
Now, courtesy of Dark Star Films, the documentary opens for limited runs in New York and Los Angeles this September:
NYC: Regal Union Square – September 19
LA: Laemmle NoHo – September 20
With its blend of cultural commentary and horror history, Chain Reactions is essential viewing for anyone who has ever felt the ripples of Hooper’s chainsaw reverberate through the genre.
Written & Directed by: Alexandre O. Philippe
Produced by: Kerry Deignan Roy
Co-Produced by: Robert Muratore
Executive Produced by: Kim Henkel, Ian Henkel, Pat Cassidy, Hamza Ali, Badie Ali, Greg Newman
Director of Photography: Robert Muratore
About Alexandre O. Philippe
Throughout a body of work that includes 78/52 (Sundance 2017), Memory: The Origins of Alien (Sundance 2019), Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on The Exorcist (Venice 2019, Sundance 2020), and Lynch/Oz (Tribeca 2022), Alexandre has developed his own brand of “cinema essay,” exploring the art of filmmaking and its practitioners. He won the 2024 Venice Classics Lion for Chain Reactions, which also had its North American premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, and will soon be released in theaters. Alexandre is currently working on multiple feature documentaries on cinema. His latest, Kim Novak’s Vertigo, will premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 1st, 2025.