DUBAI: For roughly its first third, “The Last House” is an enthralling watch — a tense survival thriller that will resonate with pretty much everyone who remembers COVID lockdowns.
It centers on a working-class, economically struggling family living in suburban Seattle: dad Jason (Wagner Moura); mom Ann (Greta Lee); and their two kids Graham and Ruth.
A torrential storm hits — a storm with a mysterious after-effect: Everyone is now sealed inside their homes and all communications are down. There’s air circulating, but the doors, windows and any other potential exits can no longer be opened — some kind of magical water-barrier sealant, apparently.
The family’s adjustment to ‘the new normal’ is deftly handled by director Louis Leterrier. At first, the novelty is kind of fun and sees their bonds strengthen. Then boredom and frustration set in as the weeks and (eventually, as spoiled in the trailer) years pass. The stress is relatable and palpable — especially when the power grid fails and when the family have to start working out ways to find food when they can’t leave the house — and the actors do a solid if unspectacular job with writer Matthew Robinson’s often clunky dialogue as tension builds and mental health deteriorates.
Somewhere in the middle of these revelations, though, “The Last House” shifts gears into sci-fi horror territory: The rain has also allowed mysterious creatures to access environments they usually couldn’t. And those creatures are hunting humans. So, when the rain comes, the family must draw the curtains and not make any noise. Yes, we’ve seen “A Quiet Place.”
Eventually, “The Last House” becomes an insipid, unimaginative horror film with an environmental subtext so condescending and ham-fistedly delivered that it borders on satire.
Nothing is satisfactorily explained. The ‘twists’ are mind-bogglingly clumsy. And the ending — after a set-piece boss battle that tries and fails to nail the homemade monster trap in a similar style to the “Stranger Things” crew catching a Demogorgon — is rushed and risible. Oh, and the voiceover… good grief; a word salad that sounds smart until you actually think about it.
Since reviewers have to avoid spoilers, it’s not possible here to fully explore the internal illogicality of “The Last House” — but, trust me, there’s really nothing about it that isn’t already spoiled.
