Film Review: Last House On The Left (2009)

The last time I tried to watch a remake of a Wes Craven film, it didn't really end well (See here.) But I was never particularly attached to the 1972 original in the way I am the Elm Street films, so I knew I probably wouldn't get annoyed with it.

Quite the opposite happened, in fact. Not only did I enjoy it, but found it on a par with the original, even improving on it in several ways!

Last House On The Left tells the story of a convict, Krug (Garret Dillahunt) who is broken out of police custody by his brother Francis (Aaron Paul), and his girlfriend Sadie (Riki Lindhome). Nearby, John (Tony Goldwyn) and his wife Emma (Monica Potter) are driving to their holiday home with their 17 year old daughter Mari (Sara Paxton). After Mari meets up with a friend and they score some pot from a teenager (who ends up being the son of Krug), the two girls end up being abducted and abused at length, and left for dead, which is when the trio of miscreants (along with Justin, the son, who isn't that bad) meet up with the soon to be very unhappy parents.

The original was filled with tension thanks to the masterful hand of Wes Craven (who, along with Sean Cunningham produce this new version), but at the same time, it was cheap, it was nasty, the acting was pretty bad, and it included a rather bizarre comedy subplot that was at odds with the rest of the film. It wasn't exactly a classic.

That isn't saying this is either, but it seriously sorts some of the problems that the original had. The comedy subplot is gone, and the film looks fantastic. There are some incredibly impressive shots in it, not arty, but very good none the less. They help raise the film above your average remake. The tension from the first also remains, even though I knew what was going to happen, just not how. All the death scenes are different from the original. And quite inventive too.

The notorious rape scene in the original is toned down a lot also, and is done quite tastefully in comparison. Gone also, is the forced urinating and lesbian scenes, as well as the disembowelment, and the absence of these doesn't hinder the film in the slightest.

The acting also raises this above the usual cheap remake. With the exception of Riki Lindhome as Sadie (who seems to have been hired just so they could shoehorn in some nudity), the performances are all top notch. Special kudos to Garret Dillahunt, who always plays outstanding villains (Deadwood fans will remember him playing two different nasty pieces of work within its 3 season run) and Monica Potter and Tony Goldwyn as the anguished parents are also believable as it gets (and raise the question - what would you do if this happened to a loved one and you had the people responsible under your roof?)

Without spoiling the end, it is almost at odds with the rest of the film though. Some would view this as a bad thing, crossing the line between realism and just being silly, but I thought it was justified and deserved.

But at the end of the day, it's another remake. No matter how much I enjoyed it, there was that persistent feeling of seeing it before. Which is a shame considering how much it improved on the factors that let the original down.

***1/2

Another good remake, but a remake nonetheless. The new 'Last House' loses the comedy and the bad acting and adds some brilliant cinematography...but we have been down this road before.