Mari Collingwood and her friend Phyllis plan to go to a concert. Four psychos kidnap them en route. The Collingwoods report the girls missing, but the cops are useless. Thus begin the torturous hardships of the two teenage victims in The Last House on the Left.

When the psychos' car breaks down, they leave it on the side of the road and drag the girls into the woods. Cue the humiliation, rape, and torture. A lot of it is hard to watch; sometimes because it's horrifying, but a lot of the time because it's poorly executed.

The gang eventually kills both girls and leaves their bodies in the woods. With their car still disabled, they stop at the nearest house for help. By sheer coincidence, it's the Collingwood house. Oh...kay.

As houseguests, the gang is oddly well-behaved. The Collingwoods eventually notice clues that their visitors are somehow connected to their daughter's disappearance. They look for her in the woods and find her body, almost effortlessly, in the middle of the night. Oh...kay. They return to their house, where the gang is still sleeping, to exact their revenge. Their plan includes a few booby traps that wouldn't have seemed out of place in Home Alone.

At 84 minutes, this thing still feels too long. The schmucky slapstick routines with the two inept cops are a serious drag. The chase in the woods seems to have been stitched together without regard for logic or continuity. Some of it looks more like a traipse than a chase.

Fred J. Lincoln, who played one of the psychos, expressed regret for this movie, calling it the worst he ever made. Considering his credits include Fleshpot on 42nd Street and Edward Penishands 3, that's a hell of a condemnation. I can understand his misgiving, though. The Last House on the Left somehow manages to be dreary and silly at the same time.

Misgivings aside, I'll give credit where it's due. Phyllis and Mari's ultimate fates are effectively appalling. The climax in the Collingwood house has some intense moments. The frequent silly parts diminish it overall, but there are a few flashes of the talent that Wes Craven would display later in his career. (And to be fair to Last House, it's not Craven's worst movie, either.)

5 out of 10.

Seen on Amazon Prime.