Review: House of Last Things

House of Last Things is a new supernatural-psychological thriller from director Michael Bartlett set in Portland, Oregon. The film drops the viewer in the middle of a home wrought with anguish over an initially unexplained tragedy. Much of the film lives in the place where the audience knows a little but not the full story. For some, the lack of clarity will be a deal-breaker and many will likely get frustrated before the film finishes. As the film rolls on, the horror of the events slowly gets revealed in full and we understand why characters behave the way they do.

Sadly for me, this all comes to late in the story. By the time I began to understand character motivations and relationships, the film had already overstayed its welcome. Although the film is very nicely shot, it is very tough to embrace. 

Sarah and Alan Dunne (Dalton and Schulman) are a successful couple living in the suburbs. They leave to Italy to heal as Sarah has spent some time in some sort of care facility. A house-sitter comes, and shortly after the couple leave, the sitter’s mentally handicapped brother and aggressive, mean-spirited, bad-intentioned boyfriend arrive. And so the story begins.

House of Last Things does not deliver much in the way of scares. The film has more in common with Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now than any other film. In fact, the recurring yellow balloon imagery is very much a nod to the use of red in that film and The Sixth Sense. The other symbolism is less basic and often far more confusing. The film is ambitious but lacks the perspective of someone now involved in writing it. I honestly think a few points of clarity would have seriously shifted my experience with the film

Aside from the story's issues, the acting is also very hit and miss. Blake Berris as the dangerous boyfriend is the strongest of the cast. Several other, especially Diane Dalton as Sarah, don't have the skills to pull off such an emotionally charged story. The film is made with skill and energy but never rises above its own navel-gazing. In the end, House of Last Things left me confused and not emotionally affected.

2.5/5

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