In the summer of 2007 a group of emerging filmmakers and actors set out into the Scottish wilderness to make a low budget horror film in homage to the low budget American horror films of the 1970s. The grizzly slasher titled The Bench has never been completed, until now.
Inspired by Tobe Hooper’s original Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), this team of filmmakers led by writer / director Sean Wilkie (Matter of Time) used the HD revolution to their advantage, shooting the film on HDV tape lends a quality that’s been absent from cinema since 16mm celluloid went out of fashion some decades earlier, the film taps into elements established by the grungy guerilla films such as The Blair Witch Project.
Magic Monkey Films (Mercy Falls / Lost At Christmas) is proud to announce the revival of the long-dormant horror film, The Bench, a project that echoes the raw terror and unrelenting suspense of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This reimagined tale brings a modern twist to the nightmarish reality faced by a group of friends, who are drawn to a sinister bench and disappear one by one.
The Bench is not just a film; it’s an homage to the genre-defining classics that have chilled audiences for decades. Drawing inspiration from the gritty and visceral storytelling of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
As the friends grapple with the malevolent force that beckons them to the bench, viewers will be reminded of the sheer terror that gripped them during the iconic scenes of the 1974 masterpiece. The Bench aims to pay homage to that same sense of dread and anticipation, as the mystery of the bench unravels and the body count rises.
Among the cast of young emerging actors includes early performances from Joy McAvoy (Filth), Matt McClure (Penny Dreadful) and Tony McGeever (Shetland) alongside a killer soundtrack featuring Moby, The Rainbow Girls and Blue Sky Archives (featuring Chvrches lead singer Lauren Mayberry).
The Bench is available now to rent or buy on Prime Video.
