The House At The End of the Street (2012) review

Director: Mark Tonderai
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Max Thieriot and Elisabeth Shue
Rating: 15

At first glance this film looks like it’s going to be a stereotypical ghost story, which could have the potential to be pretty darn scary. Although after watching, it left me a little bedazzled at what it actually was.

Elissa (Jennifer Lawrence) and her mother Sarah (Elisabeth Shue) move into a new house in a new town, only to discover that the house next to theirs was home to a gruesome murder. It is said that the daughter who lived in the house murdered her parents one night and then disappeared into the woods. Rumour has it she still lives in the woods. Elissa soon befriends awkward Ryan (Max Thieriot) who happens to be the brother of the killer daughter. Although Ryan seems sweet and innocent on the outside, the more Elissa discovers, the more she realises he might be something else.

At first the storyline seems like it’s going in a pretty straightforward direction. Girl kills parents, she haunts the house but the brother lives there and so on. But soon enough we find out that it’s not a ghost story at all, and something a little more sinister. Once you find out it’s not heading where it seemed to be, you feel a little confused and pretty much wonder what the hell is going?

I can’t say too much about what direction the film takes from there, as I don’t want to ruin it for you, but it ruins itself. I can see that the storyline could have possibly been a very well thought out one, but there’s a lot that needs developing. It felt almost as if Tonderai rushed through it and didn’t include important parts that were definitely needed.

Honestly I was left feeling a little baffled, and with many questions I wanted answered. Although I got the jist of the film, I feel there was a lot left to be desired. Only go and see this if you feel like being disappointed.

Verdict: 2/5