Revenge is a dish best served...right at the end and very quickly? (The Last House On The Left (DVD))

Member Name: Claribella

Product:	The Last House On The Left (DVD)
Date:	29/08/09 (29 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: good premise

Disadvantages: poor revenge scenes

We love revenge films, mostly watching the Japanese ones such as Oldboy, Ichi the Killer etc etc. Here, the Americans have had a go at the genre, and we both sat down very excited to give it a go.

Imagine this: your daughter is viciously raped, then her tormentors come to stay in your house (not knowing who you are). After a while, you discover who they are, and plan your revenge. This is the premise of this film, and it's a very good one which could have been executed a lot better.

The storyline is very promising, and the excessive amount of time spent on the rape gives you a strong appetite for the revenge element which is sure to come. Sadly, the revenge side is very short, and never really gets going. There are real problems with the pacing, and the first two thirds should really have only been half the film (if that makes sense!)

Advisory wise, there are some very brutal scenes in the film. The rape is hardcore, trying to build anger for the revenge bit, but it's uncomfortable viewing I have to say. Sadly the violent revenge doesn't meet up to the violent rape, and I felt the end of the film was a real anti-climax.

The acting is solid if not a bit one dimensional, but that's OK to me because really this isn't a film that's about the acting, it's about the revenge. The cast is pretty much unknown (a few faces from TV that ring a bell but nothing much), so to be fair they did a good job carrying the movie. It's not going to win any awards, but there certainly wasn't anything that got in the way and made it suffer.

All in all, an average film that could have been so much better. If you want a film that really delivers in terms of revenge, try Oldboy.

Summary: it really isn't that satisfying