Seeing as how The Last House on the Left (originally released in
1972) was Wes Craven’s first film, its many faults are excusable.
There’s no real character development, the storyline is full of holes,
and most of the acting is just awful.

The story itself is totally twisted and exciting, though. A group of
completely psychotic criminals escape from prison and wind up in a
small town where they befriend, molest, and ultimately kill two young
women. On their way out of town, in the middle of nowhere, their car
breaks down, forcing them to take shelter at the nearest house—a
house that just happens to belong to the parents of one of the girls
they just killed.

After a few clues tip Mom and Pops off to what has happened, they
exact vengeance against their daughters’ killers. The best part about
the original, despite all its flaws, is the happy-go-lucky early-’70s
pop music that plays throughout—the dichotomy it creates is
freakish.

In this age of remake overload, The Last House on the Left is one
film that deserves another chance to be as terrifying and exciting as
it should’ve been the first time around. Thankfully, in the 2009
version, most of the problems in the original are corrected.

The rape scene is absolutely brutal (the similar scene in the
original was more awkward than terrifying), and now, unlike before, the
movie really is scary. In the original, when the father was
booby-trapping the house so the killers couldn’t escape, he sprayed
shaving cream all over the hallway floor. Because that’s what you do
when a man rapes and kills your daughter—you make him fall on his
butt. But this time, the attack scenes involve garbage disposals,
boobies, and, yes, microwaves. They’re a little (okay, a lot) over the
top, but much more entertaining than the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it
attacks in the first attempt.

The only thing I missed from the original was the fantastically
inappropriate ’70s music. They never should’ve fucked with the
soundtrack. recommended

Megan Seling is The Stranger's managing editor. She mostly writes about hockey, snacks, and music. And sometimes her dog, Johnny Waffles.

6 replies on “On Screen”

  2. Thanks for the revue….. eye appealing and fingerpointers all at the same time.

    Which part is the twisted part?

    The becoming friends,the molestation… or the dragging out of the time BEFORE killing them?

    Perhaps the real TWIST is the line to remake the film with a gaurantee that the apartment to be used for the “tub” scene not include any “high end real estate neighborhoods that might send mixed relationship signals or any of those ” drats and double drats batman catwoman left her panties and bra stuffed in my mouth along with uncle alfreds magic glowstick ” no comment comments.

    Then again… maybe that’s what the making of a remake is all about….

    getting in on the take of the make…

    making it up, making it in and of course….. the ever demonstrative making out.

  3. The film was amazing. So much better than expected. Though, the political context seemed to get lost for traditional horror values. But, because the values changed so much, I’ll just put in the ballad that inspired the movie.

    Pehr Tyrsson’s daughters in Vänge
    Their forest was cold

    They slept a sleep too long
    While the leaves appear on the trees

    The youngest one woke up first
    Their forest…

    And so she woke up the others.
    While the leaves…

    Then they sat up on their beds.
    So they braided each other’s locks.
    So they put on their silken clothes.
    So they went to the church.
    But when they came to the pastures of Vänge
    They met three herdsmen
    – Either you will be the wives of herdsmen
    Or would you lose your young lives?
    – We do not want to be the wives of herdsmen.
    We would rather lose our young lives.
    They cut off their heads on a log of birch.
    And so three wells appeared.
    The bodies were buried in the mud.
    The clothes were carried to the village.
    When they came to the estate of Vänge,
    Lady Karin met them outdoors
    -And would you buy silken robes
    That nine maidens have knitted and stitched?
    Untie your sacks and let me see,
    Maybe I will know all three of them
    Lady Karin beat herself on the chest,
    She went up to Pehr Tyreson
    – There are three herdsmen on our courtyard,
    They have slain our daughters.
    Pehr Tyrsson grasped his sword,
    He slew the two eldest ones.
    The third one he let live
    Until he could ask him:
    – What is your father’s name?
    What is your mother’s name?
    – Our father is Pehr Tyrsson in Vänge;
    Our mother is Lady Karin in Skränge
    Per Tyrson goes to the smithy
    He had iron crafted around his waist
    – What shall we do for our sins?
    – We shall build a church of lime and stone.
    – The church will be named Kerna
    We are fain to build it.

  5. Can a woman that has been raped b4, sit through this movie without any wierd feelings? Im asking as the husband of a wonderful woman who went through something many yrs ago.

  6. Uh huh, a crappy film, a crappy review and crappy threads, AMEN, Go rent Van Sant’s Elephant for your horror. Wes Craven is a hack who has gotten wealthy by grossing out and scaring teens; what he has to do with “film” is nothing.

Comments are closed.