The Last House on the Left (2009) DVD

In this remake of Wes Craven’s classic 1972 debut, Dennis Lliadis amicably attempts to rekindle the terror and psychological tension of one of the most infamous horror movies ever made. With contemporary audiences more desensitised to shocking cinema the need to question the relevance of such a remake is a persistent grievance here, but with Craven heavily involved throughout the production process this is one reimagining that manages to do justice to its source, while providing enough well executed chills to keep uninitiated audiences content. By its own merits then this is a cruel and powerful piece of post-modern horror.

An exploitative element is notably less visceral than before, but putting past comparisons aside, the pivotal woodland rape scene makes for one of the most gut wrenching and distressing scenes in recent memory. What is most commendable here is that while much of the film evokes the tone of the original, there is enough dissimilarity to take the story in a contemporary, equally effective direction.

This is not a lazy film – it does try to be different and there is little like-for-like gimmickry and even less disaffecting homage here. That said it is still but shades of the original, and although this recurrent comparison may fast be becoming tiresome, it is simply impossible to either justify or set this apart from other recent rehashes. Then again there comes a point when you just have to put nostalgia aside and remind yourself, it’s only a movie… only a movie… only a movie.

Adam Woodward