Beauty and the Beast
I admit I originally had no interest in seeing this '09 remake of 1972's "Last House on the Left," which involved the rape/murder of two girls and the ensuing wrath the parents of one of the girls (loosely based on Ingmar Bergman's "The Virgin Spring" from 1960). Why not? Because the original movie was just so dumb. I know many hail it for being "disturbing" due to the vile, sadistic villains and the humiliation, rape and gory murders -- but I didn't find it disturbing at all. Why? Because the preposterous storyline accompanied by the goofy music and bumbling cops made it impossible to take serious. Consequently, just like I don't consider the violence in, say, a Road Runner cartoon disturbing -- because it's impossible to take seriously -- so I didn't find "Last House" disturbing. Dumb? Yes. An interesting early 70's curiosity? Yes. Disturbing? No.
Apparently director Dennis Iliadis and writers Adam Alleca & Carl Ellsworth understood the blatant flaws of the original because this remake overcomes them all and is a near masterpiece of filmmaking.
Without knowing what it was, I stumbled upon this remake last summer while channel-surfing in a motel in the heart of Nebraska; the opening caught my attention and I became engrossed. About 40 minutes into the story it dawned on me that this was the remake of "Last House on the Left." Although I couldn't finish the film, the first thing I did when I got home was secure a copy for viewing.
What makes this remake so good? For one thing, the filmmaking itself is top-of-the-line -- the cinematography, music, cast, acting, mood, suspense, etc. all work together to make a superior piece of cinematic art -- yes, even though it's "just a horror flick." I was particularly impressed with the way the film juxtaposes the beauty of nature & people or family with the hideousness of human evil. Take, for example, the opening scenes of the beautiful woods & music followed by the thug's murderous escape and the later sequence where a fleeing girl is shot while swimming through a lake. The film was incidentally shot in Helderberg Nature Preserve, Western Cape, South Africa, of all places. Gorgeous locations, to say the least, and a fine stand-in for somewhere-in-the-sticks, USA.
The character of Justin was another great element. Through no fault of his own he's the teenage son of the main scumbag. It's clear that Justin hates the perverseness and hypocrisy of his "family life" and craves normalcy and genuine love. He's in torment but is too afraid of his father to overtly act (and understandably so), but he does what he can, when he can. The message of Justin is that people are not cursed to follow the wicked/foolish ways of their bloodline. Simple wisdom and force of righteous will breaks the curse. Redemption is there, if you want it.
I also liked the way the film depicts the duplicity of the thug gang, particularly the leader Krug (Garret Dillahunt). He's the ultimate POS but watch him cover-up his intrinsic wickedness with his knack for social acclimation -- a fake smile, innocent smalltalk and a well-placed "Amen." The film successfully shows how some people aren't what they appear to be; they're the express opposite! Not to mention the flick is a good reminder to always be on your guard. Don't be naive; not everyone's like you or me. Some people will happily abuse, rape and kill without a second thought. They're scum, pure and simple (by their OWN foolish choices). If you have daughters make sure they view this, even though some parts are hard to watch.
Also, the numerous preposterous elements of the original story have been fixed. The family is vacationing in a wilderness area and there's only one town nearby. The daughter successfully steers the criminals close to her home, unbeknownst to them. The thugs aren't dressed-to-the-nines when they show up at the parent's doorstep, not to mention they have a legitimate reason ("There's been an accident").
The goofy elements of the original -- the silly music and bumbling cops -- have been eliminated altogether. The film has a serious, realistic vibe and therefore the horrific events are taken seriously.
There are a couple of clichéd horror aspects I could do without, specifically the scenes involving a garbage disposal and a microwave. They're a bit silly and needlessly stretch the believability. But then it struck me that they're types of universal/divine judgment & justice, which works for me.
Another aspect that improved upon the original involves one of the victimized girls, but I don't want to give it away.
At the end of the day, this '09 remake is vastly superior in every conceivable way and proves that remakes can and should be made when/if appropriate. In ways it's even a masterpiece, a brilliant showcase of beauty and the beast. Don't miss out just because you thought the original was a dubious.
The theatrical version runs 110 minutes and the unrated version four minutes longer; both versions are featured on the DVD (I haven't seen the unrated version since the theatrical was more than enough for me, if you know what I mean).
GRADE: A
