#7 - The Last House on the Left (1972)
(dir. Wes Craven)
This was Wes Craven's first film, a disturbingly violent remake of Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring. Craven wanted to make a film where the violence felt uncomfortable, ugly, and real. This was the Vietnam era, where the news footage from overseas was much more disturbing than even the most violent films, and he wanted to portray violence in a way that treated it seriously and didn't gloss over the suffering. He explores the effect that violence has on the lives of normal people, and how one act can lead to another. The low budget grindhouse feel helps to reinforce the uncomfortable realism of the movie, and in general this is an effective but kind of unpleasant experience.
Even though this is an important film in both the evolution of horror and in Wes Craven's career, it does have a lot of flaws. The biggest, in my opinion, is the incredibly awful and inappropriate music. I don't understand how anyone could think that the cheesy folk/pop music that makes up most of the soundtrack is a good idea. I mean, I suppose that it could be that way intentionally, to add contrast and highlight just how screwed up the violence is... but I just found it annoying and irritating. There is also a subplot about two bumbling cops who are trying to get to the scene of the crime, and it is very silly and doesn't fit with the tone of the rest of the movie. Some comedic relief in such a graphic film would have been welcome, but I feel like it goes way too far and just comes across as stupid.
This is a significant movie that I believe is worth watching at least once, but I don't see myself wanting to revisit it anytime soon. I can't argue that it is extremely effective - it sets out to show violence on film that is as ugly and unpleasant as it is in reality, and succeeds. If you can stomach the violence and are curious how Wes Craven got his start, go for it, but I don't recommend it for most people.
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