Much like Elizabeth Olsen was able to elevate but not ultimately save ‘Silent House’, Jennifer Lawrence lends her talent to a similar project in ‘House at the End of the Street’. She’s good as a horror movie heroine, but the movie itself is way over directed by Mark Tonderai and far too reliant on silly/clichéd horror tropes. That’s of course as much attributed to the script by David Loucka (who in turn got a start on the story from filmmaker Jonathan Mostow) as anything Tonderai does, but he doesn’t help the cause and ultimately has crafted a movie that’s as likely to inspire giggles as screams. The screening I was at had both in almost equal measure. When the flick is trying to scare or unsettle you, it’s mostly successful, except of course for those unintentionally silly moments. Attempts at fleshing out the story are rather unsuccessful though, so while this does most of the things a fright flick should do, it still manages to leaves you slightly dissatisfied. Genre fans will probably find some things to like about the movie, but fans of Lawrence may be slightly let down.
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Tags: David Loucka, Early Review, Elisabeth Shue, House at the End of the Street, Jennifer Lawrence, Jonathan Mostow, Mark Tonderai, Max Thieriot
