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THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT (2009)Movie Reviews
Horror thriller based on the classic, about how far two ordinary people will go to exact revenge on the sociopaths who harmed their child. Cast:Tony Goldwyn, Monica Potter, Sara Paxton, Garret Dillahunt, Martha MacIsaac, Riki LindhomeDirector:Dennis IliadisRelease Date:March 13, 2009DVD Release:August 18, 2009From:Rogue PicturesRating:RLength:1 hr 50 min
AUGUST 18, 2009
The Last House on the Left (2009), Weak Reviews, Mixed
The Last House on the Left (2009) played to weak reviews. Reviews were mixed. • Christy Lemire wrote for the Associated Press, "...never scary, but instead feels deplorably gratuitous..." • And Rafer Guzman wrote in New York Newsday, "Its main goals are to shock, titillate, enrage and otherwise jolt your reflexes, which it does shrewdly and successfully." More Reviews Below...
The Last House on the Left (2009) Positive Reviews (36 Reviews, reviews below)
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: POOR(cg) "...merely vile (and dull), with a badly miscast Tony Goldwyn as the raging dad who makes revenge for his daughter's violation look more gratuitously brutal than the crime."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 111 words, 03/13/09
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: POOR(cg) "...slick and quick and loud, filled with the typical amped-up thumps that accompany every body blow.... never scary, but instead feels deplorably gratuitous..."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 521 words, 03/13/09
Thelma Adams, Us Weekly: POOR(cg) "...with a graphic rape scene and repeated stabbing and bludgeoning (and here's a new one: death by garbage disposal!), the horror flick made us nauseous."(See all of Thelma Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 75 words, 03/12/09
Claudia Puig, USA Today: POOR(cg) "Not only is it plodding and completely predictable, the carnage is rendered slowly and quasi-reverentially, making the whole brutal experience come off like torture porn."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 390 words, 03/13/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (13 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...though I have never actually heard a skull exploding in a microwave, I suspect the movie's sound designers deserve some kind of an award..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 346 words, 03/13/09
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: POOR(cg) "...congratulations, stars Tony Goldwyn and Monica Potter and director Dennis Illiadis. You've made one sickening piece of garbage."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 432 words, 03/13/09
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...an effective representative of its genre, and horror fans will like it, I think, but who knows? I'm giving it a 2.5 in the silly star rating system and throwing up my hands."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 901 words, 03/12/09
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...a shockingly mundane disappointment taken on its own and a deeply misguided refraction of the original.... includes plenty of patently unnecessary back story."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 566 words, 03/13/09
Kyle Smith, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "In his first American film, Greece's Dennis Iliadis takes time out for arty moments, lingering on a red wall or the motion of a girl swimming."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 620 words, 03/13/09
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: VERY GOOD(cg) "Is it pointless? It is, actually. Does that kill it? No, actually. I wouldn't call it a good time, but I would call it an unexpectedly good genre film."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 696 words, 03/13/09
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: VERY GOOD(cg) "Its main goals are to shock, titillate, enrage and otherwise jolt your reflexes, which it does shrewdly and successfully.... it's horribly, shamefully satisfying."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 325 words, 03/13/09
David Edelstein, New York Magazine: VERY GOOD "...fascinating -- and extremely entertaining if you don't mind being morally corrupted at every juncture.... we can finally relax and enjoy the torture..."(See all of David Edelstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 692 words, 03/16/09
Stephen Cole, Toronto Globe & Mail: VERY GOOD(cg) "...for more than an hour, 'The Last House on the Left' is the rarest of things: a deliberate, underplayed horror movie that is truly shocking."(See all of Stephen Cole's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 546 words, 03/13/09
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "...will, most likely, attract no especial outrage and have no subsequent obligation to justify its gunky, atavistic subject matter, untouched by the light of higher reason."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 03/11/09
Josep Parera, La Opinion: WEAK(cg) "...trata de imprimir un cierto toque personal combinando toda clase de estilos, lo que resulta en una mezcla confusa e innecesaria..."(See all of Josep Parera's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 563 words, 03/13/09
Andrew Dowler, Toronto Now: POOR(cg) "...for fans who want a little gore but no really disturbing images or ideas... The acting matches the characters: bland. Ditto the script, visuals and pacing."(See all of Andrew Dowler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 189 words, 03/12/09
KEY CITIES (12 Reviews)
Mike Mayo, Washington Post: POOR(cg) "...contains one of the most graphically brutal and terrifying rapes ever put on screen. After it, the action settles into more conventional 21st-century cinematic violence..."(See all of Mike Mayo's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 03/13/09
Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...takes the 1972 original into an interesting new direction, with bold camera angles, good actors and a script that heaps on as much character development as carnage."(See all of Peter Hartlaub's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 611 words, 03/13/09
Tirdad Derakhshani, Philadelphia Inquirer: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "At once an elegiac tragedy about innocence and experience and a vicious yarn about the kidnap, torture, rape, and murder of two girls..."(See all of Tirdad Derakhshani's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 329 words, 03/13/09
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: MODERATE(cg) "...plods to its finale.... Yet, the Collingwoods' revenge, though preposterous in its thoroughness, makes more emotional sense than it did in 1972."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 579 words, 03/13/09
Kara Nesvig, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Sure, the movie is predictable, but it keeps its audience on edge. Much of this is due to Dennis Iliadis' camera angles..."(See all of Kara Nesvig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 460 words, 03/13/09
Ted Fry, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "It's an effective narrative. The pace is crisp, the production polished and professional; but there's as much to abhor as there is to appreciate."(See all of Ted Fry's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 397 words, 03/13/09
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a movie of shocking sadism and cruelty.... Well-crafted and faithful to Craven's manipulative vengeance plot, it makes violence violent again."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 517 words, 03/13/09
Michael Sragow, Baltimore Sun: POOR(cg) "The movie means to be about how violence makes animals out of all of us, including the vengeful parents. Unfortunately, that also includes the audience."(See all of Michael Sragow's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 416 words, 03/13/09
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...this is not an idea-free flick. And Craven (shepherding producer on this remake) believes in character. More, he believes, in engaging what the word 'horror' means."(See all of Lisa Kennedy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 412 words, 03/13/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "...will, most likely, attract no especial outrage and have no subsequent obligation to justify its gunky, atavistic subject matter, untouched by the light of higher reason."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 03/11/09
Peg Aloi, Boston Phoenix: MODERATE(cg) "Craven's original vision of brutality and redemption changed horror cinema forever. This time around, it's only a movie."(See all of Peg Aloi's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 131 words, 03/19/09
Andrew Dowler, Toronto Now: POOR(cg) "...for fans who want a little gore but no really disturbing images or ideas... The acting matches the characters: bland. Ditto the script, visuals and pacing."(See all of Andrew Dowler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 189 words, 03/12/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...though I have never actually heard a skull exploding in a microwave, I suspect the movie's sound designers deserve some kind of an award..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 346 words, 03/13/09
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...a shockingly mundane disappointment taken on its own and a deeply misguided refraction of the original.... includes plenty of patently unnecessary back story."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 566 words, 03/13/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Dennis Harvey, Daily Variety: WEAK "...will still strike many as strong meat by current mainstream horror standards... unnecessary on every level save the paramount commercial one."(See all of Dennis Harvey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 789 words, 03/12/09
Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "...adheres sufficiently closely to the original template so as not to offend purists and manages to pack an intensely visceral punch of its own..."(See all of Michael Rechtshaffen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 475 words, 03/13/09
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: POOR "...a shockingly mundane disappointment taken on its own and a deeply misguided refraction of the original.... includes plenty of patently unnecessary back story."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 566 words, 03/13/09
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: VERY GOOD "...though I have never actually heard a skull exploding in a microwave, I suspect the movie's sound designers deserve some kind of an award..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 346 words, 03/13/09
30.8 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Last House on the Left (2009)'s reviews are separated by an average 30.8 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
The Last House on the Left (2009) (36 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Last House on the Left (2009)'s reviews cover 69.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 16,588 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 461 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Last House on the Left (2009) Coverage, Volume & Length (36 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 4.9 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Last House on the Left (2009)'s reviews on average broke 4.9 hours after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is The Last House on the Left (2009)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Last House on the Left (2009) (36 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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