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Cynthia Carr, Sandra Cassel, Lucy Grantham, Martin Kove, Jeramie Rain ... see more see more... , Marc Sheffler , Gaylord St. James , Ada Washington , David Hess , Fred Lincoln , Marshall Anker

Wes Craven's first film was a crude but shocking horror opus that, like George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968), became a grind house hit largely because it went much further than terror fi... read more read more...lms before it had been willing to go. Often compared to Ingmar Bergman's stark medieval rape drama The Virgin Spring (1960) (though one wonders whether this was influence or just coincidence), Last House on the Left follows a group of teenage girls heading into the city when they hook up with a gang of drug-addled ne'er-do-wells and are brutally murdered. The killers find their way to the home of one of their victim's parents, where both father and mother exact a horrible revenge. Like Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre two years later, Last House on the Left was an unrelievedly dark vision of contemporary horror that inspired many future films which copied its effects without achieving its visceral impact. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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52% liked it

26,389 ratings

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63% liked it

30 critics

R, 1 hr. 23 min.

Directed by: Wes Craven

Release Date: August 30, 1972

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DVD Release Date: August 27, 2002

Stats: 2,312 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (2,312)

  • fb100002384654145
    April 27, 2012
    fb100002384654145
    How Wes Craven was aloud to make another film after this travesty is beyond me. Wes Craven seemed to have been so focused on being shocking and grotesque, that he forgot to make an actual movie. Everything about this schlock screams amateurism and incompetence. The acting is l... read moreaughable, the dialogue is ridiculous, the editing is inept, and the film's tone is all over the place. The film makes very misguided attempts at juxtaposition by playing cheesy 70's folk music and having annoying "comedic" banter between the film's two sherifs. The film's use of comedic interludes between the torture scenes with the two main girls are not only inappropriate but frustrated me at the thought that the filmmakers thought it was a good idea. Take away the film's sadistic torture and rape scenes, their is little in the way of actual artistic merit. The story is very bland and light, with absolutely zero plot twists. There is nothing horrifying, thrilling, or funny about this film, it is just a shameless exercise in sadism. This movie is neither a horror flick nor a thriller, it is just garbage made by hacks that was only made to shock, nothing more.
  • blkbomb
    April 22, 2012
    blkbomb
    Krug Stillo: Listen to daddy. I want you to take the gun, and I want you to put it in your mouth, and I want you to turn around and blow your brains out. Blow your brains out, BLOW YOUR BRAINS OUT! 

    "Mari, 17, is dying. Even for her, the worst is yet to come."

    I've seen Wes Cra... read moreven's The Last House on the Left, three times now. Despite, its classification as a classic of the horror genre, I really don't care for it. Forty years after its release, this just doesn't have the same effect on people that it did when it came out. Upon release, it was a controversial shocker. Now, it is just a badly acted exploitation film that has dated horribly and features some of the most godawful music I have ever heard in a movie. Nothing really fits together. Craven is making a sadistic shocker, but misses out on some key elements he needed. The tone is all wrong for a film like this and everything is overblown to the point of ridiculousness. Such as Krug's crime that originally landed him in prison. He had killed a priest and two nuns, and now he has his son hooked on heroin so he can control him. Craven wants to make us fear these characters, but all we can do is laugh at them because they are so terribly written. 

    This isn't the horror classic some describe it as. It's early Wes Craven and it has the same look and feeling of his The Hills Have Eyes movies. Neither of which do I like either. I like the remake of The Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes much, much more than Craven's original. This is do mainly to the fact that they make things more serious and achieve a much heavier and more terrifying tone. Carven's initial thought with The Last House on the Left had a lot of potential. It all just went downhill with all the lousy dialogue and characters. 

    Sadistic movies have definitely came worse than this one, though. It isn't the worst movie of its kind that you could watch, but the classic status it has received is annoying and unwarranted. All it is, is a movie that pissed a lot of people off in 1972, that looks like a cheap and poorly made exploitation film. There's hundreds of those and they don't get this classic status. You may feel you need to watch this one, especially if you are a horror fan, but there is really no need. 
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    April 3, 2012
    TheDudeLebowski65
    This movie has been deemed one of the most depraved horror films ever. The movie shows graphic rape, and torture scenes. It'll make you uneasy. I'm usually not squeamish watching films like this; but for this one I was. The story is unsparing. Wes Craven leaves nothing out. It's ... read moreviolent and gory and horrifying all at once. I personally think that this was The Devil's Rejects of its day. And that says a lot. The film overall is great; I definitely felt uneasy. One of the most disturbing horror films ever. The film has a lot of tension, which really elevates the film . There some good performances here, obviously David Hess' performance being the standout here. The Last House on the Left is a powerful film that plays on your deepest fear to create effective terror that will distu8rb you. This film was only surpassed in disturbing content by Cannibal Holocaust in 1980. This film is not for the faint of heart, and for a horror fan who's seen a lot of the genre, that says a lot. Fans of horror exploitation will surely enjoy this ride into madness, and this is a film that you will not soon forget. The actors are chilling in their on-screen menace and the two actresses that are being raped by the gang are very effective in their performances. This is a a powerful that redefined exploitation horror. I very much enjoyed the film, but I found it hard to watch as well. If you're not used to these types of film s, then you should pass up on this one. If you love all types of horror, and haven't seen this, then pick it up; it's a memorable ride into madness.
  • aquateen2
    March 7, 2012
    aquateen2
    A lot better than you might have expected. The Last House on the Left is a classic 70's exploitational horror movie with most of the scares and thrills coming not from the gore, but from the irony, tragedy and atmosphere.
  • stormyweather980
    January 15, 2012
    stormyweather980
    I saw the remake before I saw this one, the original. I have to say, the remake is far better and both feel like totally different films, but this film is good in its own right as well.
  • SirPant
    January 11, 2012
    SirPant
    The last house on the left was a pioneer for independent film and pushed the boundaries of cinema and censorship, for that it should be congratulated and remembered. However, it's a sick and horrible little film with very few redeeming features. It's not my cup of tea, I like my ... read morehorror with a slice of comedy but if it has to be dark, it's what you don't see that always strikes me as more effective - the question is, would this film be half as notorious as it is, had it not been banned. A clever way of getting ahead for a young director. It's also a blatant reworking of Bergman's The Virgin Spring, he even admits so in the DVDs extras. More a slice of cinematic history than horror classic.
  • sononothing
    March 30, 2011
    sononothing
    Last House On The Left is an example of early 1970's exploitation cinema that deals with Mari (Sandra Cassell) and her friend Phyllis (Lucy Grantham) as they indulge on the eve of Mari becoming a woman ie. turning seventeen years old. They go to a concert in the big, bad city and... read more wind up in the hands of Krug (David Hess) and his gang of fugitives. In the process of heading for Canada both girls are tortured, raped, and eventually killed. Ironically, their car breaks down in front of the home of Mari's parents (Gaylord St. James and Cynthia Carr). The group spends the night at their house posing as traveling insurance salesmen, but what happens when Mari's parents find out who they really are and what they did.

    So what is Last House On The Left? Is it an early work of genius from Wes Craven? A masterpiece that showed a man that was well on his way to create films like The Hills Have Eyes and Nightmare On Elm Street? Is this effect doubled because it was produced by Sean "Friday The 13th" Cunningham? This is why the legend of this movie has grown as much as it has- because of the folks involved in it. This film is no different than the hundreds of other drive-in exploitation films that were being pumped out of various producers garages in the early 1970's. It's no better and no worse. A bad script, bad acting, a lack of money, and an inexperienced director makes this film almost laughable if it wasn't for the violence on the screen. That's the key to a film like this and I Spit On Your Grave. A quote comes to mind when thinking about these two films. One comes from Roger Ebert's original review of Spit in which he discusses a fellow patron at the theater he was watching the film at saying "that was a good one" at the end of one of the numerous rapes scenes in that film. There's an audiences for stuff like this. It's like porn. Screw the plot, as long as it has that stuff and an unsatisfying conclusion.

    Just look at this like a rough draft for some of the films that Wes Craven would make later. It's his first one so we can't be to hard on the guy. it was the genre in 1972. But a classic of horror cinema? If that's the case then you can call a used piece of toilet paper a classic too.
  • ajv2688
    December 28, 2010
    ajv2688
    This is the original, do not see the remake! This movie is crazy and more horrific than the new one. If you love horror movies, you can't miss this one.
  • ythelastman89
    May 13, 2010
    ythelastman89
    This is one of the most effective and well done American horror movies of the seventies and it still has the same effect to this day. What Wes Craven did is create a true sense of terror because the story is every parents worst nightmare for their children. A young girl is kidnap... read moreped with her friend on the way to a concert. Then subsequently force-addicted to heroin. Rape is also involved, as well as the death of both girls. The rest is a really original ans suspenseful revenge story that will never probably be matched. The filming and style is extremely surreal and almost too close to a super-8 home movie, maybe that's why it feels so real to a lot of people. This to me is what people epitomize the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre to be.
  • cosmo313
    March 16, 2010
    cosmo313
    A horror film in the true sense of the word. This is one of the finest low budget grindhouse/exploitation films ever made. It's not all that dissimilar from many of those films, a great deal of which a far inferior, but what sets this films apart is that it makes an effort at hav... read moreing artistry. The music in particular is a great example of this. During the terrible moments involving Mari and Phyllis, the music is contrasting to the acts on display. During the finale, the music is more fitting, as it is not upbeat, but rather dischordant, dissonant noise-not easy to listen to, and perfectly fitting the violence that it plays over.

    This is an all together gruesome affair, but the film hits the audience with more than just a viscera lpunch to the gut. It hits hard emotionally and mentally as well. You could write an academic essay arguing how morality plays into the film, and could easily provide an argument defending what Mari's parents do as justifiable, even though what they do is almost as bad as what Krug and Co. do. The fact that the audience can identify with the girls and feel sorry for them is what makes this an unforgettable and terrifying film.

    It's low budget and the time period that it was made are easily seen, but those are forgiveable if everything else works, but also can help a film at times, giving it a more raw and messy feel that only adds to the atmosphere.

    Part of why my grade is so high is because this is just a good movie in general, but also because it was the debut film of the now legendary Wes Craven. The film's producer Sean S. Cunningham, would go on eight years later to cement his place in history by directing a little horror movie called Friday the 13th. Steve Miner, the assistant editor on this film, would likewise go on to do more work in the horror field, directing the two immediate sequels to Friday the 13th, then later, one of the many sequels in the Halloween franchise.

    If you can find this one, give it a shot. It's by no means perfect, but is certainly a great work nonetheless.

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Critic Reviews

Dave Kehr
September 26, 2007
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

It isn't artistically adroit, but if success in this genre is counted by squirms, it's a success. Full Review

Howard Thompson
May 9, 2005
Howard Thompson, New York Times

The party who wrote this sickening tripe and also directed the inept actors is Wes Craven. Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

A tough, bitter little sleeper of a movie that's about four times as good as you'd expect. Full Review

Peter Canavese
September 27, 2011
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

A depraved exploitation film specifically designed to shock and repulse viewers...also a cultural artifact reflective of and reactive to the time it was made... [Blu-ray] Full Review

David Nusair
March 13, 2009
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

The exceedingly low-rent production values subsequently ensure that the more overtly horrific elements within Craven's script often fall completely flat... Full Review

September 26, 2007
TV Guide's Movie Guide

An ugly, disturbing, passionately conceived cult favorite, Last House on the Left is much more complex (albeit crudely made) than its controversial reputation would suggest. Full Review

September 26, 2007
Empire Magazine

Sartorially dated certainly, but still powerful, disturbing and raw. Full Review

Rob Gonsalves
July 23, 2007
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com

Craven and company tap into something hot, dark and deep. Full Review

Douglas Pratt
June 14, 2007
Douglas Pratt, DVDLaser

if one is not disgusted enough to stop watching, one is left wishing that the movie would show more than it does

Jeffrey M. Anderson
May 26, 2006
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

It's disgusting and gripping at the same time. Full Review

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The Last House on the Left Trivia

  • Name these films' director; "Swamp Thing", "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Last House on the Left", "Scream".  Answer »
  • Horror legend Wes Craven's chilling first feature film was titled..  Answer »
  • Scream, Cursed, Red Eye, A Nightmare On Elm Street, and Last House on the Left are all movies that have something in common. What is it?   Answer »
  • Wes Cravens First Movie Was....  Answer »
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