Greetings from the “Dark Side”!

A talk with a Legend at The Fright Night Film Fest in Louisville Kentucky. 

First:  Any true horror fan knows who Gunnar Hansen is.  For those of you who aren’t fans of the genre, Gunnar Hansen is the actor who portrayed “Leatherface” in the original Tobe Hooper classic, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.  I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Mr. Hansen while at the Fright Night Film Fest, I asked him a few questions:

GypsyTishy:  Are there any modern day horror films that you have been impressed with?

GH:  Well, honestly, I haven’t liked many ‘modern’ horror films.  Probably the last one I saw that I liked was Jacob’s Ladder.  It was a deep interesting story and it was well acted.  The cinematography was exceptional.

GypsyTishy:  Did you see the Chainsaw remake?  What did you think of it?

GH:  I HATE remakes.  They called that film a “re-imagined” take on a classic.  Yeah, it had to be “re-imagined”, because the people who made that film had no imagination.  My feeling is that people who make re-makes either have no creativity or imagination, or they are so untalented that they can’t come up with an original script or story on their own.  All they can do is ride on the coat tales of previous geniuses.  In regards to the Chainsaw re-make, they took this terrifying character (Leatherface); who we originally knew nothing about, we didn’t know his background or why he did the things he did, which made him all the more horrific, and reduced him to a kid with a skin condition.  It was insulting.

GypsyTishy:  I know that you have been predominately writing over the past several years, but do you have any acting projects in the future?

GH:  Actually, I was in one that is being shown here at the Fright Fest this week-end.  It’s called Gimme Skelter.  It is a great film, you should check it out.

GypsyTishy:  Oh! I definitely will!   I have one last question Mr. Hansen.  What do you feel is the most important component for an independent film maker today to have when they decide they want to make a movie?

GH:  A good story.  Without a good story and a script you have no foundation and it won’t matter what your budget is.

GypsyTishy:  Thank you so much for talking with me, may I have picture?

GH:  Sure!