Texas Chain Saw Massacre returns to Clinton Street Theater

If you have never seen The Texas Chain Saw Massacre on a big screen, the Clinton Street Theater is about to give you the chance. The 1974 horror classic plays there on Sunday, October 18, at 7 p.m., as part of the theater's Horror October program, and tickets are $10. It is a brand new 4K restoration released for the film's 50th anniversary, and it runs in digital format.

For anyone who has only caught it on a small screen, the setup is worth the trip. Tobe Hooper's film follows Sally, played by Marilyn Burns, and her brother Franklin, played by Paul A. Partain, who head out with friends to investigate whether their grandfather's grave has been vandalized. A detour to the family's old farmhouse lands them next door to a group of crazed, murderous outcasts, and the rest is horror history. Seeing it in a room built for cinema, rather than on a couch, is half the draw.

The screening is only one stop in a much larger month. Horror October runs from October 1 to 27 at the Clinton Street Theater, at 2522 S.E. Clinton St., with prices that shift from night to night. The schedule is packed: Friday the 13th (1980) played on October 5, The Little Shop of Horrors (1986) and The Rocky Horror Picture Show with Sinophelia both ran on October 10, and Faust (1926) screened on 16mm with a live score by Accendino on October 11. Malpertuis is on the bill for tonight, October 12, at 7 p.m., and Hush (the "Shush Cut") follows on October 13. After The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, the program keeps going with In My Skin on October 19, The Living Dead Girl on October 20, Death Spa on October 22, Frankenhooker on October 23, and Mandy on October 27. The Rocky Horror Picture Show makes several appearances throughout the month, each with a different host, from the Clinton Street Cabaret to Thom Hilton.

If you are in the mood for horror but want to do more than sit in the dark, the city's GuignolFest runs alongside it. Portland's 72-hour horror film contest, founded in 2009 by Dylan Hillerman and Julia Reodica, challenges teams to write, shoot, edit and deliver a horror short in three days. The 2026 edition kicks off Friday, October 16, at 8 p.m. at Beulahland Bar, at 118 N.E. 28th Ave., with filming running through October 18 and films due by 11:59 p.m. on October 19. The finished films screen and the awards are handed out on Saturday, October 24, back at the Clinton Street Theater. Ticket prices for that vary, and the details are at guignolfest.com.

So, if you want to catch The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in its 50th-anniversary 4K restoration, mark Sunday, October 18, at 7 p.m. on your calendar. At $10 a ticket, it is an easy way to spend an evening at one of Portland's most atmospheric cinemas, and if you make a night of it, you might find plenty of other spooky things to do around the city that same weekend.