Download Wes Craven's Last House on the Left: The Making of a Cult Classic eBook

What a great and informative read that's filled with tidbits that I didn't know before. The author interviewed some of the people involved with this during 1991/92 and in 1996/97. Below are bits of information from the book:

Hallmark Releasing liked the script so well that they gave Wes and Sean an extra $40,000 to make it.
The first draft had Krug and Weasel engaging in necrophilia with Phyllis after they killed her.
Mari's rape was supposed to be much longer and more brutal. In the script her character was blonde.
An early draft had Mari's father being karate-chopped to death and a different draft had him dying in a scalpel fight.
Phyllis' death was to be more brutal. Sadie was supposed to gouge her eyes out, cut off her breasts, and cut her tongue out.
Sean said the film was supposed to have a lot more sex in it but decided against it stating that it's more important to tell a story.
Martin Kove, who played the deputy, turned down the roll of Krug because his character was too "dark." Martin was dating and living with David's sister at the time.
Ada Washington, the black woman who drove the chicken truck, was currently Sean's mother's housekeeper and she didn't know how to drive. Fats Domino's Blueberry Hill was supposed to be playing on the truck's radio during that scene. I understood Sean to mean Ada was also the housekeeper while he was growing up. Her part was supposed to be played by a black man they'd given the character name Jerome Pickins to.
Sean's wife Susan made the clothes.
Junior was supposed to survive.
Earlier in the year Wes and Sean worked together on a soft-core porn called Together.
Jeramie Rain/Sadie was paid $600 for her role and she bought a Doberman puppy with the money. She also couldn't stand her hair style in the film. She got poison ivy while filming and in one scene in Mari bedroom where she's wearing black men's socks, it's because they had to hide the poison ivy.
Jeramie said that once between takes she was leaning on the hood of the car, arms down at her sides (and I guess her head resting on the hood), and the police showed up. Someone thought she'd been in a car accident and called the police so they came to investigate.
Fred Lincoln said that Sandra/Mari was scared of the film, left, and had to be talked into coming back to work. She also said she did a terrible job in the film and that she was scared of the script.
The chain saw scene was inspired by Wes seeing a movie poster in Times Square (New York) of guys fighting with chain saws.

There are about fifty pages where the author summarizes the film in chronological order and inserts comments by the actors regarding those scenes. I really like that it goes in order since it's easier for me to follow along.

Perhaps my favorite part is near the end, chapter 8 titled Rip-offs and Rehashes, where the author goes into several David Hess films that are in the same vein as this one, and discusses others of this genre from the 70s and 80s, some of which I've never heard of. Love learning about similar films and can't wait to check some of them out. Here is the list from the book.

Fred Lincoln (Weasel) said something funny: "They never actually showed that my character was dead...so I want to do 'Last House II: Weasel's Back!' A guy with no d---, out for revenge!"

Jeramie said something sort of funny too: "I believe that Last House on the Left is truly the worst movie ever made...and I'm proud to have been a part of it! (Laughs) Seriously, it's the biggest embarrassment, and I apologize to my children for being in it. It has no redeeming qualities. It does have a cult following, but I'm not proud of it at all...I would hate to think of anyone being harmed or hurt because of something I did. That's not what I want to contribute to the world...I'd rather do positive things with my life."

I've included eight pages from inside the book, pages of the filming schedule, list of other films mentioned in the book, and script pages of the original ending of the film.

the importance of the movie,is overshadowed by Szulkin's "under the microscope" details and facts.And those details and facts are exactly why you can not put this book down.The index alone is a treasure listing of the the greatest horror/slasher/sci-fi/camp...movies ever made. I cannot wait to see what Szulkin's next subject will be....

I'm 30 years old and always wanted to see "Last House" at the drive-in where it always played, and at the midnight showings, just to see what everyone was talking about. By the time I could see it by myself, all this stopped w/video! You can imagine my delight in having all the hype recaptured in this book! Well written, with plenty of behind-the-scenes info, and an update with the actors/actresses in the movie. I felt like I was back in time! If you've wanted to know what everyone's been talking about, and how the "House" set the standard for terror (which it did, when you compare the slasher movies to it), get this book. It's well worth the price!

hello last house fans, as a close confidant of david szulkin and last house star david a hess, i must say people have to read this graphically detailed monster of written class. this 70's film student text book has inspiration.szulkin has touched the heart and soul of wes cravens masterpiece. All cult fanatics will read this book

If you ever wanted to find out the REAL deal behind making a low budget horror movie this is the book for you! Yes the "making of" is there but what was truly delightful was the frank discussions about ad campaigns, how the director and producer had no idea what they were doing, reaction of viewers, the actors and actresses. Also covered are the host of "rip offs" which followed: Don't Look..., Last House on..., ad nauseum. There is so much information in this volume that it is hard to fully describe. Very well written with tight editing. Hundreds of visuals, many were supplied by director Wes Craven from his personal collection. Immensely entertaining and difficult to put down.