On the way to California, a family has the misfortune to have their car break down in an area closed to the public, and inhabited by violent savages ready to attack.On the way to California, a family has the misfortune to have their car break down in an area closed to the public, and inhabited by violent savages ready to attack.On the way to California, a family has the misfortune to have their car break down in an area closed to the public, and inhabited by violent savages ready to attack.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
Peter Locke
- Mercury
- (as Arthur King)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWes Craven was in part inspired by an incident that happened to him while taking a motorcycle trip with his wife. When they stopped in a small Nevada town, a trio of locals shot an arrow past his head and insulted him. When Craven threatened to sue them, they replied they could easily kill him, leave his corpse in a nearby salt mine, and no one would ever know.
- Goofs(at around 45 mins) One brief nighttime shot of "Bobby" has been flipped: a cut on the right side of his face can be seen on the left hand side.
- Quotes
Big Bob Carter: Do you always try to stop trespassers by hanging yourself?
- Alternate versionsThe original UK cinema version was cut by the BBFC and lost part of the final climactic stabbing plus the closeup shot of Pluto's bloodied and mauled ankle. The initial 1987 video release on the Palace label surprisingly restored all of the previous cuts but lost a brief 2 second scene where Mars points a gun at Brenda's open mouth. The 2003 Anchor Bay release saw all BBFC cuts fully restored.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Hills Have Eyes Part II (1984)
Featured review
If Wes Craven had retired after the double punch of 'The Last House On The Left' and 'The Hills Have Eyes' he would be a horror legend. Unfortunately he didn't.
Wes Craven's 'The Last House On The Left' is a horror milestone. It's a very crude and uneven movie, but still for me a very powerful one. It contains some scenes that are still extremely intense and disturbing, and that have rarely if ever been surpassed in subsequent horror movies. I don't known if Craven is embarrassed by it or what, but he seems to have distanced himself from it in his subsequent career. He went on to make several movies that were much more commercially successful, but were a lot tamer and much more viewer friendly. 'The Hills Have Eyes' is almost a transitional movie, the beginning of the slow journey from "old" Craven to "new" Craven. Compared to 'Last House...' it's a walk in the park, but alongside say the 'Scream' trilogy it looks the Manson family's home movies! Craven was still working with a very low budget compared to the mainstream, but for him it was a big step forward from 'Last House...' the results are not as shocking and confronting but it's a lot more consistent and technically more efficient, so I can understand why some horror buffs regard this as his best movie. Personally I find it difficult to choose between the two. The story concerns a family on a road trip looking for a silver mine they have acquired. There's Dad (Russ Grieve) a retired cop, Mom (Virginia Vincent), and three kids - Brenda (Susan Lanier), Bobby (Robert Houston) and Lynne (Dee Wallace). Also along for the ride is Lynne's husband Doug (Martin Speer) and their baby. Despite warnings from a local old coot (John Steadman) they stray from the main road and soon find themselves stranded in the desert. Little do they know that Jupiter (James Whitworth) and his cannibalistic clan, which includes sons Mars (Lance Gordon) and Pluto (Michael Berryman) have sniffed them out and are miiiighty hungry! Craven manages to create a lot of tension in this movie, the "normal" family are realistic and convincing, especially when things begin to fall apart, and Jupiter, Mars and Pluto are three fantastic baddies. Michael Berryman really capitalizes on his naturally odd looks (the results of multiple birth defects), and steals every scene he's in. Of all the cast Dee Wallace went on to the highest profile career ('The Howling', 'Critters', 'E.T.' etc.), but this movie made Berryman into a horror icon. James Whitworth is also terrific, and Lance Gordon gets THE line of the movie ("Baby's fat. You're fat... fat and juicy."), but Berryman outshines them both in the same way that Krug (David Hess) dominates his gang in 'Last House...' I like this movie a lot. I don't think it's as impressive as 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' or 'Dawn Of The Dead', but it still deserves a place among the best of 1970s American horror, and should be watched by anyone with an interest in the genre. If Craven had retired after the double punch of 'The Last House On The Left' and 'The Hills Have Eyes' he would be a horror legend. Unfortunately he didn't, and went on to be involved in some very lame movies (especially the sequel to this which should be AVOIDED AT ALL COSTS!) This decision has obviously proved to be very financially rewarding for him, but it is one that will forever divide horror movie fans.
helpful•3640
- Infofreak
- Jul 6, 2004
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $230,000 (estimated)
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content