Franco Prosperi directs yet another exploitation flick inspired by Craven's notorious Last House on the Left, this time a trio of bank robbing hoods(led by Ray Lovelock, Let Sleeping Corpses Lie)besiege a group of Catholic teenage students and their Nun supervisor, setting off a reign of terror over the course of three nightmarish days. Sister Christina(Florinda Bolkan, Don't Torture a Duckling)tries without fail to rescue her girls from constant harm, sexual molestation and degradation, even suffering depraved persecution herself. The three hoodlums, pretty-boy Aldo(Lovelock)and his unhinged co-horts Walter(Flavio Andeini)and Nino(Stefano Cedrati), often resort to diabolical acts mistreating the girls, and Christina, making extra efforts to humiliate and frighten their weaker prey. The girls watch as Christina's clothes are ripped away by Walter, forced to put on her nun outfit for their amusement. One of the girls, chosen by Walter as a victim of constant abuse, is held down as Nino penetrates her from behind, with their sole purpose being to "pop her cherry." It's even shot in slow motion for extra impact as Aldo holds Christina in a position where she's forced to watch without the ability to turn away. When one of the girls is almost raped by Nino, she stabs him in the leg with a comb, later caught after almost escaping by Aldo, and penetrated with a large sharpened stick by the very one who almost sexually molested her. Aldo spends a great deal of time setting himself up as an innocent among two depraved monsters, but he's even worse than they, with his true self really awakening at the end when the girls revolt out of outrage for their captors' behavior. Thankfully, director Prosperi doesn't actually elaborate the evil actions of the cretins in vivid detail, finding ways to shoot around the explicit acts such as the vaginal violence which leads to the victim's death, or the maid who is bashed across the head by an iron when Walter becomes enraged for no reason whatsoever. The film works off the idea that we will be impacted by who the chosen victims are, teenage girls and their nun. The hoods are your typical scumbags, relishing their activities watching the victims squirm in fear, taking full advantage of them. They are cowards with big weapons who cause harm to those who supposedly pose no threat which always builds up the violent climax where the innocents develop a primal nature, getting even with the ones who caused them such harm. Nothing really special about this umpteenth Italian terror film except the fabulous location on a fine piece of property overlooking a beach with a typically fine performance from Bolkan who plays it completely subtle, using her eyes as a means for communicating with the viewer and has this strength which is credible and admirable. We understand why she snaps(..although, it's not a theatrical snap, but a very quiet one, where she contemplates her actions and can not overcome her hostility after the horrifying murder of one of her girls, who almost got away), and that also relates back to Craven's infamous film where a very mature and sensitive person can become overpowered with the urge to kill, if pushed to the breaking point.
Review of The Last House on the Beach
