BLU-RAY REVIEW

Last House On The Left, The

Featured In Issue 142, September 2009

Picture4
Sound4.5
WSR Score2.5
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
Universal Studios Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
61110488
(MPAA Rating):
R / Unrated
(Rating Reason):
Sadistic brutal violence including a rape and disturbing images, language, nudity and some drug use
(Retail Price):
$39.98
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
110 / 114
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
Not Indicated
(Theatrical Year):
2009
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
08/18/09
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Dennis Iliadis
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
DTS HD Lossless 5.1, DTS 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

This remake of The Last House On The Left is based on the original motion picture written and directed by Wes Craven. After kidnapping and ruthlessly assaulting two teen girls, a sadistic killer and his gang unknowingly find shelter from a storm at the country home of one of the victim's parents—two ordinary people who will go to increasingly gruesome extremes to get revenge. (Gary Reber)

Both the theatrical (109:50) version and the unrated version (113:37) are available. Special features include a short featurette A Look Inside (HD 02:41), six deleted scenes (SD 08:58), BD-Live interactivity, plus D-BOX® Motion Code and a digital copy of the film.

The 1080p VC-1 picture is inconsistent in that at times whites bloom, for an unbalanced contrast. Mostly, though, the contrast is well balanced, with good shadow delineation. This is a dark picture during the intense action sequences, and shadow depiction is well defined. Colors are naturally rendered, with vibrant and warm hues and accurate fleshtones. Resolution is good as well and reveals sharp and clear images, with fine facial features and object textures exhibited. Blacks are deep. This is an effective picture that enhances the terror and emotional impact. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is low-frequency intense, with the thunderstorm that underscores the climatic scenes. Bass extension is deep and powerful to below 25 Hz in the .1 LFE channel, with intense bass in all the other channels as well. Dialogue sounds a bit bloated at times, but is generally spatially integrated. The music score fills the soundstage with a wide and deep presence that wraps into the surrounds. Surround envelopment is often aggressive and directionalized. At times phantom center back imaging is impressive. Dynamic response is often intense, pushing the SPL to system-threatening intensity. The D-BOX Motion Code response enhances the emotional impact in all the appropriate moments. (Gary Reber)