tangreat-bk
There are basically two acts in the film and both of them are overlong.
The violence feels unnecessary cruel and the payoff is not particularly fulfilling.But it's a well crafted movie. There are many sequences with nail biting tension. Acting is particularly impressive across the board.Not for the fain of heart.
paul-ayres-60784
I haven't seen the original yet but I certainly intend to now. I have heard about this thriller/horror and as I am a big fan of the original I Spit on your Grave / Day of the Woman this movie has been recommended to me several times.
I can't imagine how they could have told this story any better. The acting was superb, the script very believable and the directing was near perfect. The best acting was by the mother, played by Monica Potter, although I can't fault any of them.
I don't want to outline the plot as it has already been done but it is a story of abuse, desperation and revenge. The family who have been wronged are very likeable right from the start so you can't help but really route for them all the way through.
Edge of your seat stuff! Well done Wes Craven.
Python Hyena
Last House on the Left (2009): Dir: Dennis Iliadis / Cast: Sara Paxton, Martha MacIsaac, Tony Goldwyn, Monica Potter, Spencer Treat Clark: Violent recap of the 1972 horror film about bad decisions gone worse. Two teenage girls are abducted, raped and left for dead and the guilty make the mistake of arriving at the parents of one of the victims. This results in graphic revenge when their daughter appears. Realistic setup becomes predictable and way too gruesome. Directed by Dennis Iliadis with decent photography. Unlike the original film, the cast are subdued by cardboard. Sara Paxton and Martha MacIsaac play the victims while Tony Goldwyn and Monica Potter play the vengeful parents. The problem here is standard Hollywood interference where the realism and controversy of the original is compromised. For example, Paxton surviving is the studio decision to leave somewhat a happy ending. In the original the ending was not so happy for Lucy Grantham and Sandra Cassel whose deaths are way too disturbing but at least remained credible for the plot. Then we have the disturbed son of the villains turning good and actually surviving. In the original this kid was so dominated by his cruel father that he was forced to shoot himself. The son is played by Spencer Treat Clark and the role was much better in the original film. Perhaps somebody should do the same with this celebrated violence. Score: 4 / 10
Adam Peters
(49%) As far as Hollywood's recent and largely quite pointless horror remake obsession goes, including the rehashing of such gems as the Texas chainsaw massacre, Halloween, Nightmare on Elm street, Maniac etc, this is OK, but still at the end of the day a somewhat lazily controversial multiplex filler. In all fairness this is quite well put together, the direction is solid, and the performances for a sleazy revenge thriller are nothing to complain about. For anyone bar the most timid cinema goer this isn't going to overly offend, and really the violent attacks on the two kidnapped girls offer the only truly nasty parts of the whole movie. While everything else feels oddly difficult to even slightly shock as the scumbag characters 100% had it coming, so the message that all violence, just or not, is awful doesn't really work here. By the end this is just about worth a look for horror fans, but it won't become a cult hit like the original.
AD
