I’ll be the first to admit that I have never been a fan of Wes Craven’s “Last House on the Left” despite its legacy. I respect it for it becoming a platform for Craven but otherwise it was a fairy dull movie that squanders a good premise. Plus I could never get over the comedic sub-plot involving the pair of deputies. Dennis Illiadis completely remakes “Last House” in to the revenge picture that I was originally hoping for. In doing this he side steps about a quarter of the rape and torture, and amps up the revenge plot involving the pair of parents that are outnumbered but not outwitted.
Tag Archives: Revenge
The Last House on the Left (2009) [Arrow Limited Edition]
A gang on the run after their leader escapes bumps into two college students in a small town. Things go very wrong and soon one is dead and the other left for dead. As a storm comes in, the gang finds their way to a lake house where the owners do not take well to what they’ve done.
Dark Windows (2023)
It’s surprising how out of left field Alex Herron’s “Dark Windows” has come, as it’s a movie that sneaks up on you but leaves you exhausted by the time the credits roll. “Dark Windows” is one of the best horror movies of 2023 but it’s also one of the most depressing movies I’ve seen in years. It’s a movie that pulls no punches and will leave you wrecked with despair and thinking about what you’ve just seen for a while. I was very certain that I knew what was going on during “Dark Windows,” but then writer Wolf Kraft subverted all of my expectations and really sent a cold chill up my back.
Fallen Drive (2023)
“Fallen Drive” opens up with a silent scene of what looks like a human body wrapped up in garbage bags and duct tape. From there what unfolds is what can best be described as an episode of “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” as directed by Neil Labute. Co-Directors and Writers Nick Cassidy and David Rice deliver what is a powder keg of a thriller that revolves around the concept that high school truly never does end. From the jumping point, “Fallen Drive” is teeming with so much tension that it’s literally seeping from every scene.
Dracula Untold (2014)
DRACULA WEEK
It’s a damn shame that Universal just didn’t have enough confidence in Gary Shore’s treatment of Dracula to warrant it a follow up. “Dracula Untold” is a good enough movie all on its own, but it was also teeming with so much potential for a larger scale sequel that reversed all roles. Where as Dracula is the hero of “Untold” and Dominic Cooper the villain as Mehmed, the Turkish Sultan, it would have been fun to see the descendant of Mehmed, played by Cooper also, as now a law abiding police officer who engages in a new war with the modern version of Dracula. That’s just the writer in me building on head canon, but “Dracula Untold” is a very good interpretation of Bram Stoker’s novel.
Til Death Do Us Part (2023)
Damnit. Timothy Woodward Jr’.s “Til Death Do Us Part” is a wonderful idea, one ripe for a great horror comedy with a ton of action and what we ultimately got was just… not what I was completely expecting. Granted, the movie does have a wonderful grasp on what it’s trying to do, but the delivery just felt off. It’s a movie that clocks in at almost two hours, and rather than charge in head first with the laughs and action. Instead the movie takes a lot of time, at least twenty or thirty minutes, establishing the initial storyline and back story.
Fear The Night (2023)
It pains me to say this but “Fear the Night” is by no means top tier when it comes to survival home invasion thrillers. I love Neil Labute, and I love Maggie Q, I think they’re both great. I also love me a good home invasion film or survival film. But “Fear the Night” feels like someone along the way watched 2011’s “You’re Next” and thought: I can do that! “Fear the Night” has all the obvious influences with none of the context or subversive behind it. The villains even attack with their faces covered and garner their own hunting weapons including a bow and arrow.