Long beforeA Nightmare on Elm StreetandScream,Wes Cravenhad his directorial debut with the 1972 filmThe Last House on the Left. Inspired by Ingmar Bergman’sThe Virgin Spring— itself inspired by a medieval Swedish ballad — Craven and producer Sean S. Cunningham set out to make a film that accurately reflected real-world violence and death. The director’s first draft of the script, titledNight of Vengeance, was far more hardcore and pornographic. After shooting began on this version of the film, Craven decided to tone down the violence to make the version of the film we see today.
Newly 17 and on the cusp of adulthood, Mari Collingwood is heading into the city to see a rock concert with bad influence/friend Phyllis. Her parents, John and Estelle, are concerned for her wellbeing, but they realize their daughter is growing up and is due for a bit of rebellion. Meanwhile, convicted rapists and murderers Krug Stillo and Fred “Weasel” Podowski have escaped prison with the help of Krug’s sadistic girlfriend Sadie and his heroin-addicted son Junior.
In the city, Mari and Phyllis, unfortunately, cross paths with the gang. The criminals kidnap the women, carting the two out to the woods where they gruesomely humiliate, torture, and sexually assault them. Krug and the others then brutally and realistically murder Mari and Phyllis. In a shocking twist of fate, the criminals find themselves seeking shelter with Mari’s parents. After John and Estelle find out what their new house guests have done, they set outto exact their bloody revenge.
The Violence Can Be Hard to Watch
The Last House on the Leftis not a particularly nice film to look at, the low budget necessitating cheap, grainy film stock and minimalist set design. This in tandem with Craven’s documentary-style framing gives the film a sense of cinema verité that makes it feel as if what we’re watching might be as real as the epigraph says. All of this adds up to an uncomfortable viewing experience, as if we’re seeing something we’re not supposed to.Last House’srealistic lookhas left a bad taste in many reviewers’ mouths over the 50 years since its premiere. To some, the approach and subject are exploitative and tasteless.
While modern sensibilities might leave some viewers feeling the violence inThe Last House on the Leftis tame, its chaotic style and no-frills approach to violence still have the power to shock and distress others. The camera lingers as Krug carves his name into Mari’s chest before he sexually assaults her. Here, the film moves into a closeup of their two faces, Mari’s spirit slowly draining from her eyes. Phyllis’s death is similarly upsetting; she’s stabbed repeatedly in the back before the gang slices her open and rips out her intestines. In one of the film’s most infamous scenes, Mari’s mother Estelle seduces Fred, castrating him with her teeth while doing the deed.
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Coming out just four years after the death ofthe censorious Hays Code,The Last House on the Leftdepicted violence as it had never been seen on screen prior. The movie horrified audiences. Viewers at the time were known to react viscerally to the film — walking out, fainting, vomiting, etc. — and some demanded the theater destroy their copy of the film. Short of destroying the reels, theater owners and projectionists would cut the film themselves.
The BBFC found the film“unsuitable for classification,” more or less banning it from theaters across the pond. In the 1980s “video nasty” era, the BBFC banned the film once again, this time on home release. In Australia, the film never found theatrical distribution and was similarly banned on video by the Australian Classification Board. Due to the preponderance of re-cuts, thereisn’t a version that completely captures Craven’s vision.
The Tonal Shifts Are Jarring
The Last House on the Leftdoesn’t just follow Mari and Phyllis through their ordeal. In between moments of terror and discomfort, the film goes back to Mari’s parents and the police officers tasked with finding her. Parents John and Estelle are reasonably worried, but they talk themselves out of seeking help earlier by believing their free-spirited daughter is just having some fun. The cops are worse, not only pointedly ignoring Krug’s car just outside the Collingwood property but then proving completely ineffectual at their jobs when they realize what they’ve done.
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One example of this is in the scene when Phyllis and Mari are trapped in Krug and company’s apartment. The film alternates between the criminals assaulting Phyllis and the Collingwoods preparing the home for Mari’s birthday party. But the most blatantly comedic moments inLast Housebelongto the hopelessly oafish cops.
A good chunk of the movie is dedicated to watching these two trying to make it back to the Collingwood home. They’re held back when their car runs out of gas — one forgot to fill up the tank — and so must walk the rest of the way. The few cars that do pass don’t pick them up, meaning that the two arrive just after the Collingwoods have slain their daughter’s killers.
Wes Craven’s Intentions with The Last House on the Left
Additionally, Craven took issue with horror and action films failing to accurately depict this violence instead of glorifying it. As critic Scott Tobias puts it inThe Guardian’s 50th-anniversary retrospectiveof the film, “The country was willing to send its young people off to war, but it couldn’t confront the same violence and death in a theater.” For further evidence of the film’s perspective on the war, consider Krug’s junkie son, Junior. Krug mercilessly abuses his son, taking advantage of his addiction and eventually forcing him to kill himself. It’s hard to say if his life would’ve been much different had he gone to war instead.
In his famous review of the film,Roger Ebert succinctly identifieswhat it is that makesThe Last House on the Leftso upsetting. “There is evil in this movie. Not bloody escapism, or a thrill a minute, but a fully developed sense of the vicious nature of the killers. There is no glory in this violence.”The Last House on the Leftis hard to watch because it’s supposed to be a reminder of age-old evils and a striking indictment of a public afraid to recognize and confront the violence of a horrific, pointless war.
