Review of The Last House on the Left (2009) by Sgt. C — 05 Oct 2014

In the long, seemingly endless parade of horror remakes, most have been terrible but a select few have been very good. Still, none of them have ever topped their preceding film until now. The new version of "The Last House on the Left" is a visceral punch to the gut, just as dark and disturbing as the Wes Craven flick but without the irritating nuances that mucked it up and kept it from greatness.

The overbearing score is gone, as are the ill-advised moments of humor, and what we're left with is a bare-bones, stripped down revenge picture that is stylishly made and molded after the great horror flicks of the '70's decade. The violence, however is all modernized and updated for the jaded "Saw" generation but you cannot dispute its effectiveness.

The first death scene, of young actress Martha MacIsaac, is one of the less gruesome ones in the film, but it's also the hardest one to watch because of the realism. That and the tone of the film bring to mind the tone of the Craven original, but the acting and production values are much improved. Director Dennis Iliadis is impressive in his first big feature film, and the script adds some nice touches such as the death of an older brother that gives the film some depth.

"The Last House on the Left" goes to some pretty dark places, and the end result works on its basest level. There's no denying that this was skillfully made and definitely not for all audiences but it still manages to improve on a beloved but flawed original.