Behold the power of an arthouse smash. Jennifer Lawrence has just about shot up to the A-List in the indie world after her turn in the fantastic Winter’s Bone, landing roles in The Beaver (now an official Cannes selection!), Sundance winner Like Crazy, and blockbuster X-Men: First Class. Another film she’s starring in, House at the End of the Street, finished shooting last year, and has now been picked up by Relativity Media. The thriller, which also stars Elizabeth Shue and Max Theriot, is directed by Mark Tonderai, who was previously behind the camera for horror-thriller Hush. Expect a 2012 release.
Gist: The film looks at a teenager and her mother have the ingenious idea to move in next door to a house where a little girl killed her parents. It doesn’t take too long for things to get out of whack when the teen and the sole survivor of the slaughter (but really, you just know we haven’t heard the last of the dead ones) uncover a secret about the gruesome crime. You couldn’t tell from the plot, but this is being touted as ‘Hitchcockian’, with a certain affinity to Psycho (similar to Disturbia‘s not-entirely-necessary updating of Rear Window).
Worth Noting: The last film based on Psycho, as we all know, was Gus Van Sant’s shot-for-shot remake, Psycho. Needless to say, it didn’t do so hot, winning Golden Raspberry awards for ‘Worst Remake or Sequel,’ and ‘Worst Director.’ Yikes! Hopefully Tonderai and Lawrence can string something together that’s a bit more loveable.
Do We Care?: Lawrence seems to be trying to show some versatility now that the spotlight is aimed her way. With fantasy/action flicks and heart-harming dramas on the way, it makes sense that she’s also trying her hand in the horror genre (though, to be fair, Winter’s Bone was pretty horrific at times). Most of the other cast and crew involved make seem like perhaps more of a B-movie, but hey, those can be awesome, too!
