It is a ark and stormy night, and young Carrie Anne Jacobson slowly wanders the hallway towards her parents’ bedroom. Her mother stops her in the hall and tells her to go back to bed, but Carrie pulls out a hammer and bashes her mother’s head in. She then makes her way into the bedroom and does away with her father as well.

Cut to four years later, and Dr. Sarah Cassidy (Elisabeth Shue) and her teenage daughter Elissa (Jennifer Lawrence) have moved from Chicago to a quiet rural town—into the house across the street from the one where the murders took place. When they signed the rental agreement, they were told that the Jacobson’s home had been vacant. However, they soon discover that the son who survived those gruesome murders, Ryan (Max Thieriot), still lives there.

Elissa soon befriends Ryan, but her mom has a bad feeling in her gut and doesn’t want her daughter to be alone with him. Maybe it’s just the fact that they’re teenagers, or perhaps it’s something more! Sarah even enlists the help of Weaver (Gil Bellows), the town cop, to help keep an eye on Elissa. However, her fears may be founded as there is a secret inside that house at the end of the street that may put everyone in danger.

I knew nothing about this film going into watching it. I was expecting another one of those paranormal horror films, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover a classic cinematic thriller. In this review I wont to get into any specifics or plot details because I don’t want to spoil the experience for first time viewers.

House at the End of the Street has so many twists and turns—just when you think you have things figured out, they switch it up and keep you guessing. There are also a lot of tense, jump out of your seat moments—and just as you start to feel a sense of serenity, things are ratcheted up once more. Even when I knew something scary was coming, I still jumped when it happened!

While the film does have a couple bloody sequences, it doesn’t rely on blood and gore to get you scared. It is more of a classic thriller that utilizes a tense soundtrack and sharp notes to make you jump. There was one scene in the film that reminded me of other great films such as Silence of the Lambs and Wait Until Dark. I really appreciated that the movie did not take the bloody approach as it seems like most recent thrillers have gone those paranormal and gory routes.

The cast is great! Jennifer Lawrence once again shows that she can pretty much play any strong teenager role—she plays equally well across from both of her co-stars. Max Thieriot performance is so good that you are never quite sure what is up with Ryan. And I’ll always be a fan of Elizabeth Shue’s work.

The picture on the Blu-ray was clear with a touch of graininess—which I assume was done on purpose to give it more of a classic thriller feel. However, I had no issues following what was going on, even in the darker scenes. The audio was great—every seat-jumping screech and boom could be heard along with the dialog and sound effects. There was also some great use of the surround channel, particularly in one scene towards the end of the film.

The Blu-ray contains both the Unrated and Theatrical cuts of the film. The difference in runtime is only about a minute, and the unrated cut just adds one small twist to the story.

In short, I really enjoyed this film and find it an easy recommendation.

What’s Included:

Film
Blu-ray:

• Theatrical (1:40:45)
• Unrated (1:41:46)
• 1080p / Widescreen 2.35:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD MA
• English SDH, Spanish subtitles

DVD:

• Theatrical (1:40:45)
• Widescreen 2.35:1
• Audio: English DD 5.1
• English SDH, Spanish subtitles

Digital Copy:

• iTunes Digital Copy – Theatrical (1:40:45)

Extras (Blu-ray):

• Journey Into Terror: Inside House at the End of the Street (9:59)
  Behind the scenes footage and interviews with cast members Jennifer Lawrence, Eizabeth Shue, Gil Bellows and Max Theriot, director Mark Tonderai and producer Aaron Ryder. The actors talk about the film, their roles, and about working with one another.
• Sneak Peek (3:39)
  Trailers for The Blu-ray Experience, Twixt, American Horror Story Season 1, and Red Dawn
• Theatrical Trailer (2:28)

Final Thoughts:

I found House at the End of the Street to be a fun thrill ride that gave me twists and turns that kept me guessing throughout the film. It had that constant tenseness and “I know something is going to jump out and scare the crap out of me any second” feeling—which is the sign of a really good thriller for me!

I was really disappointed in the lack of bonus features. There is only one 10 minute featurette, and in it they mention how much fun the cast had on the set, so why not give us a gag reel or an audio commentary?

Despite the lack of extras, I really enjoyed the film, and this is an easy recommendation if you are looking for a great thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat (when you’re not jumping out of it)!