Archive
Review: “Friday the 13th” (1980)
Directed and Produced by: Sean S. Cunningham
Written by: Victor Miller
Starring: Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King, Harry Crosby, Laurie Bartram, Mark Nelson, Jeannine Taylor, Robbi Morgan, Kevin Bacon, Ari Lehman
Music by: Harry Manfredini
Year: 1980
Friday the 13th.
A Nightmare on Elm St.
Halloween.
Child’s Play.
These are the films that influenced my opinion of horror as a child. Tacky, cheap-looking thrillers (that were often just cheap in general) that focused more on pop-up scares and implausible concepts that really instilled no sense of fear in me. Growing up, more than a few of my friends tried to get me to watch these movies. I refused. Not because I was scared (though I was possibly scared of finding out in front of all my friends that these movies scared me), but because I deemed them unworthy of my time. … Perhaps I was a bit of a pretentious snob at that age. Read more…
Review: “The Last House on the Left” (2009)
Director: Dennis Illadis
Produced by: Wes Craven, Sean S. Cunningham, Marianne Maddalena
Written by: Adam Alleca & Carl Ellsworth (screenplay)
Based on: The Last House on the Left by Wes Craven
Starring: Monica Potter, Tony Goldwyn, Garret Dillahunt, Spencer Treat Clark, Martha MacIsaac, Sara Paxton
Music by: John Murphy
Year: 2009
Review is of a film that deals with a topic that may be disturbing to some viewers. The goal of this review was primarily to examine and compare the remake’s handling of the horrors of rape and murder with the original 1972 film’s treatment. SPOILERS are also present in the review.
The 1972 film The Last House on the Left became infamous for its intimate portrayal of torture, rape, and revenge — subjects that are still taboo to address in films today without a sensitive touch. Interestingly, largely due to the film’s brutality, the film went on to become a cult classic of the horror genre, a film genre not typically known for having a sensitive touch.
Personally, despite finding in it some admirable qualities, I didn’t much care for that film. However, aside from its advertising campaign, I did feel that the low budget production was, yes, shocking, but also tactful and sensitive in its handling of the grotesque but all too realistic depiction of the girls’ humiliation and pain before the film switched into more familiar territory as a revenge film. I can’t imagine that it was an easy task to film those scenes, and it stands as an example of a film, no matter the quality, that doesn’t necessarily have to be entertaining to have a justified existence. Read more…
Review: “The Last House on the Left” (1972)
Director: Wes Craven
Produced by: Sean S. Cunningham
Written by: Wes Craven
Starring: Sandra Cassel, Lucy Grantham, David A. Hess, Fred Lincoln, Jaramie Rain, Marc Sheffler
Music by: David Alexander Hess
Year: 1972
(Warning: This movie is likely to be found disturbing by many.)
This was actually kind of a hard review to write. One of the earlier mainstream movies to make use of its disturbing violence as not just a marketing strategy but a prime selling point, Last House‘s edge has definitely dulled in the nearly 40 years since its initial release, but the disgusting crimes committed on screen remain disturbing as ever. Read more…
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