Rio Grande Herald Movie Critic:
Gerald Salinas S.

I've got to start off by stating that I love the simplicity of the title. Yes, it's been remade two other times, this being the third. And after seeing this movie, I wouldn't want to live on the last house to the left. Although, come to think about, if you come from one way of the street... I live on the last house on the left..., oh boy.

The last house on the left, is a bit frighting, or, a lot frighting. Young Mari (Mara Sara Paxton) and her parents (Tony Goldwyn, and Emma Potter) go on vacation to their cabin next to the lake (no not Crystal Lake). Mari goes out to visit her friend Page, who works at a local grocery store. There the two girls meet a young man who offers some herb medication, (come on you know what I mean). The young man takes them back to his hotel, where all is fun and games, until his dad, a fugitive and his posse crash the party.

Now, the girls are held captive, in fear that they might call the cops. Making an attempt to escape, Page has been beaten and ultimately killed. Mari who has yet to release herself from the group, witnesses the murder of her best friend and is beaten down some more, and in the movie's most graphic scene; she is raped (I'll leave it as that). She escapes from the group only to be shot and left for dead, floating in the lake.

The group of criminals, make their way to the last house on the left, where Mari parents are vacationing, but they don't know that, and the parents don't know what they did to their daughter. The father, being a doctor, treats the wounds of the criminals and welcomes them to spent the night in their guest home. Mari, fighting her way home, is founded by her parents, and find out who the group really is.

This movie set out to do one thing and one thing only: horrify . That's right, this is the most horrific movie I've seen in a good long while. The killing scenes in this movie were completely brutal and realistic. It made me feel uncomfortable at times. And the rape scene was just awful, and it went on for a good two to three minutes. Movies have lines that shouldn't be cross, and that is one of them. Wes Craven is a master at horror movies, I still have nightmares about Freddy Kruger. He does what he's know to do, and in this movie he does it, and does it very, very well.

One of the things I like about this movie is the complete turn around. The criminals getting a dose of their own medicine. You almost find yourself, wanting the most brutal violence given to the criminals. Which the movie delivers. The father of Mari is brought up as a rugged looking guy who seems to be able to hold his own. But the realistic part of the movie he is unable to compete with the criminals. Which I like, a lot, that's what makes this movie feels so raw, well that's one of the small parts that make this movie feel raw. The real fear is what one is capable of when push to the walls.

This is a very well made horror movie, but I give it a low grade cause it's just impossible to watch, I don't ever picture myself sitting down and watching this movie for a second time. And please do not let your child watch it if he or she is too young to understand it's just a movie. And if you notice not a whole lot of names, I use parents, and criminals or the group cause well the only names I recall hearing was Page and Mari. If you love horror, then I recommend this movie if you're not a fan, not even a little, watch something else.

-