The Last House on the Left is a gratuitous (both nudity and violence wise), brutal look at what people are willing to do to those who harm their family, and unfortunately, takes this revenge plot a bit too far.
During the summer, Mari Collingwood (Sara Paxton) and her family decide to vacation at their lake house. Shortly after, Mari and her friend Paige (Martha Maclsaac) are kidnapped by a psychotic family and eventually taken to the woods to die. After being raped (which was filmed rather inappropriately in my opinion), Mari attempts one last time to escape by swimming away. However, she doesn’t make it far before she is shot in the back and left to die in the water. Following this, the psychotic family are forced to stop at a house to get out of the rain, the same house that is owned by Mari’s family. Eventually it is agreed upon that the murderers should stay the night in the guesthouse, and finally, Mari’s parents come to realize whom exactly is staying in their house. Let the revenge begin.
The problem with this film is that it depicts man, on the whole, as being capable of doing things that cannot be forgiven. Clearly the murderers do this in their acts of sexual dominance and murder, however, the problem does not lie with them. Though their one-dimensional, psychotic tendencies are never explained, they at least have the excuse of being sociopaths on their side. The problem is with the depiction of Mari’s parents, John and Emma (Tony Goldwyn and Monica Potter). I can understand their rage at discovering what these people did to their child and their need to seek revenge; nevertheless, the depiction of their revenge becomes more horrifying than what they are seeking justice for. It reaches such an extreme point that by the end of the film John and Emma have become almost more monstrous than the characters the viewer is supposed to feel no apathy towards. I was taken aback by the depths to which they sink, and in the end I have to ask: do they take it too far? How far does protecting your own really go?
The Last House on the Left tries to glorify two parents seeking revenge on those who commit horrific crimes against their daughter; however, it is too uncomfortable and appalling for me to cheer for them and what they choose to do.
Final Grade: D
PS – Though nothing really good came from the film itself, one shining moment was the use of Taken By Trees’s cover of “Sweet Child o’ Mine” in the trailer. You should check it out.
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