Back in ye olde 1972, Wes Craven directed this revenge flick. This predates "Texas Chainsaw Massacre." The raw brutality of this film was something Tobe Hooper would pick up later for his flick. Historically, this is an important film. It is so mainly cos Craven took film violence farther than anyone in mainstream cinema had at the time. Perhaps some of the old Italian gore flicks outdo Wes, but this was about as close to a snuff film as you could release commercially at the time. Is it shocking by today's standards? Eh, maaaaaaaaaybe. The violence shouldn't come as a surprise to most, but the rape scene might.
All this being said, for the little known Craven to shoot such a film on the budget he had was an accomplishment. The villains are just that. Evil. Mother. Fuckers. He doesn't pull a Rob Zombie to try to make you feel bad for them. It's almost Shakespearian in that the interesting bits of the film show what normal folk do when they're pushed into extreme distress. Is any of the acting particularly phenomenonal? Not really. However, it's a simple story w\ loads of violence, & competent performances. The directing may be the best part. Before he started putting his name on shit like "Red Eye" & "Cursed," Wes actually churned out good films. It would be over a decade before he made the infamous "A Nightmare on Elm Street."
Verdict : 3 stars. Horror folk should definitely check this out. Everyone else may want to, depending on how much of a vengeful bastard you are.