The Last House on the Left Reviews

Since I have a weak spot for Wes Craven and since this movie had developed a rather infamous reputation since its release, I was quite eager to check it out. Unfortunately, I didn't care much for the whole thing. I mean, it was still much better than the recent remake which was really weak but, in my opinion, it was just a rather nasty cheap-ass horror flick like they used to make back in those days. I was really surprised to discover that the late Roger Ebert actually liked a lot this movie since he never displayed much love for this genre. I mean, there was some good stuff, absolutely. For example, the juxtaposition of raping and mutilation with the upbeat soundtrack was really striking and some of the actors were actually decent (not all of them unfortunately). The mood was also really dark, grim and quite relentless and I can imagine that it must have been quite shocking when it was released 40 years ago. Still, even though it was an interesting directing debut for Wes Craven, personally, I really preferred his 2nd directing effort, 'The Hills have eyes', which wasn't really a masterpiece either but it was still much stronger story-wise, at least, that's my opinion. Anyway, to conclude, even though I thought it was a little bit disappointing, it still remain a classic horror feature and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Wes Craven’s early filmmaking technique, to me, feels very scattered. Scattered in the sense that he never knows exactly where he’s taking his projects. At least that’s my experience of him. Though, “The Hills Have Eyes” was brilliant, and another brilliant remake was released in 2006. For that, I may have brought my expectations a little too high, as I personally loved both the original, and the re-telling. His last successful tidbit came in the way of the “Scream” franchise, the first two being seriously entertaining pieces of work, and also hitting it big around the world. I, as well, am a big fan of them. I didn’t get the chance to see his most recent picture, in “My Soul To Take”, but now I’m sort of relieved, as the first ten minutes were brutal to watch, just terrible, and clearly portrayed just how rusty Craven is becoming.

The Last House On the Left was recognized as completely horrifying, shocking, and absolutely controversial. Back in the 70’s, certain lines weren’t to be crossed, as viewers hadn’t yet been exposed to the gory, sadistic way of Hollywood. Nevertheless, “Last House” crossed all the lines, setting a new standard in the way of horror, which, we all know, would be done hundreds of times not long thereafter, including most modern day takes on “Horror”. Of course, it’s not always good to include gut-wrenchingly wrong scenes, but sometimes it works just fine, adding to the intensity, entertainment value, and so on. Since “Last House” was made so long ago, I almost completely ignore the fact that, indeed violence is a higher priority than most anything else in this film. Also, the fact that it worked relatively well for what Craven was aiming for. He aimed to shock audiences, and he succeeded admirably, setting a new precedent for the next wave of terror.

If you’re from the new generation, you more then likely saw the remake first, just a couple years ago upon release. I don’t blame you, as once upon a time, I went straight for the “easy” stuff that didn’t require a whole lot of you’re attention. I think it’s always a good thing, going back to the roots of when, how, and what exactly the dawn of a franchise was. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a major one to note, and I highly recommend seeing that at you’re earliest convenience. Not to be missed. I wouldn’t call “House on the left” a must see by any means whatsoever. It may be a cult classic to a lot of people, but it’s not actually a very good film, and I will probably get it out of my head within the next couple of days. I’m not calling this a bad flick, more so just a typical, sadistic horror. Perhaps in 1972 I would have respected it a lot more. Unfortunately, today’s audience have been exposed to so much crap, it’s a shock that we even get “scared” anymore during a viewing experience. On the bright side, Craven’s vision still holds up relatively well, and the clichés are few and far between. I was also surprised by the father/criminal fight towards the end, as it actually impressed me, not seeming too cheesy in the process.

What lacks in the acting department, is easily overshadowed by the somewhat intense sequences of desperation that had me entertained for the most part. Another thing to note is the premise. While the execution may be nothing special, it’s the whole idea that appears genius in my book, and I hadn’t seen anything like it before viewing the remake, or this version. The plot says it all. The soundtrack is a wee bit cheesy, but I think Craven wanted that, as this film has a lot of comedic value as well. If you’re looking for a general revenge flick filled with some nasty stuff, then look no further. Just don’t think you’ll be that shocked at what you see, because, chances are, you wont be. Have fun with it, as it’s a decent little 80 minutes.

5.8/10

"Mari. She was a lot tougher than you, doc. She took a while to kill. She was really tough. We had a hard time with her."

Every filmmaker has to start somewhere. During the 1980s, Wes Craven and Sean S. Cunningham separately developed two of the most lucrative long-running horror franchises in cinematic history: A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Friday the 13th, respectively. Yet, the careers of these two blokes were jump-started by the low-budget 1972 shocker The Last House on the Left, for which Craven and Cunningham collaborated to create. Fundamentally a sadistic, no-holds-barred adaptation of Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring, The Last House on the Left is not for the faint of heart. Due to its explicit content, the film represented an important leap forward in what could be shown on theatre screens. Few prints of the film survived circulation without being butchered by either the distributors or the exhibitors. All these years on, the word most often used to describe this film is "disturbing", and there are numerous scenes to justify this label. Heck, the tagline was as follows: To avoid fainting, keep repeating "It's only a movie...It's only a movie..."

The plot of The Last House on the Left concerns two teenage girls, Mari (Cassell) and Phyllis (Grantham), who venture from secluded suburbia to the big city in order to attend a rock concert for Mari's birthday. While looking to obtain some marijuana, the girls find themselves ensnared by a pair of murderous escaped convicts, Krug (Hess) and Weasel (Lincoln), and their accomplices, Krug's lover Sadie (Rain) and Krug's son Junior (Sheffler). Locked in the truck of a car and taken out into an isolated spot in the woods, the two girls are systematically humiliated, tortured, raped, and eventually murdered. After committing the crime, though, the gang get more than they bargained for when they are forced to show up at the nearest house to spend the night: the home of Mari's parents. Once Mari's mother and father learn of the gang's hideous crimes, they decide to exact brutal revenge.

An amateur $90,000 movie with dizzyingly high ambitions, Wes Craven's low-budget exploitation feature is actually much smarter than some have given it credit for. Due to the raw, rough-edged nature of the moviemaking, it's challenging to perceive Last House on the Left for what it was designed to be: a scornful indictment of violence. Its message is that bloodshed is never the right choice, whether for sadistic purposes or ostensibly justified vengeance. Once Mari's parents slaughter the murderers, nothing is solved: their daughter is still dead, and they've denied their own humanity by avenging Mari. This is underscored by the movie's closing shot, which depicts Mari's parents as defeated, blood-spattered and exhausted, rather than victorious and satisfied. This is the reason why Craven's movie remains more than just gruelling torture porn: it's actually about something.

Several decades after it was first released, The Last House on the Left retains a certain power, and it's virtually impossible not to be affected by the shocking proceedings. Because the girls are portrayed as young and likeable, there's a great deal of honest-to-goodness tension. Meanwhile, the film's ability to shock is still potent due to the dispassionate, grainy documentary filming style which was employed to capture the events. Nothing is stylised, making the film far more gripping and unsettling. The performances, on the other hand, are fairly forgettable, with the exception of Sandra Cassell who's utterly convincing in every frame. As those involved in the production revealed, her on-screen fear was not acting; she was genuinely terrified of her fellow actors. She even decided to leave the production without notice at one stage! Bearing this in mind, it's all the more difficult to stomach the sequences in the woods.

In spite of its legendary status, The Last House on the Left is heavily flawed, mainly due to the pervasively amateurish vibe that extends to most of the staging, the heavy-handed screenplay and the atrocious score. The songs used in the film aren't just grating - they're also wildly incongruent, and in some instances undercut the film's power by calling attention to themselves and mocking the horrors unfolding on-screen. Equally destructive is the inclusion of two bumbling cops: an idiotic sheriff (Anker) and his deputy (Kove). They engage in a series of slapstick misadventures on their way to the location where all the raping and killing is taking place. The shenanigans of these two cops are usually scored with awful banjo music, and the scenes are so bad that fast-forwarding through them is an attractive option. Craven and his crew may have decided to lighten up the severity of the film's imagery with this physical comedy, yet it results in uneven tonal shifts. Also detrimental is a missing narrative beat: Mari's parents are never seen in the act of deciding what they'll do before they begin exacting revenge on Krug's gang.

While the complaints pile up, you cannot deny the power or the importance of The Last House on the Left. The assaults on the two girls in the woods are horrifying, filled with tension, and terrifyingly real. When the film works, it truly works. But there are times when it does not work at all. It's still worth seeing for its historical importance, however.

6.0/10