House at the End of the Street

Movie review by Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media
House at the End of the Street Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 15+

Dumb thriller will disappoint Hunger Games fans.

PG-13 2012 101 minutes
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Parents say

age 13+

Based on 8 reviews

Kids say

age 13+

Based on 38 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that House at the End of the Street is a thriller that many teens will want to see based on the fact that its star, Jennifer Lawrence, was in The Hunger Games. There's fighting, kidnapping, and killing, and dead bodies are shown, but very little blood and gore are on display. Language includes a few uses of words like "a--hole" and "bitch." Teen characters kiss and are clearly thinking about sex but are interrupted. Some characters drink too much, and "crack" (i.e. a lighter and some tin foil) is briefly shown in a flashback.

Community Reviews

Cheesetheball
Cheesetheball Adult
January 3, 2022
age 13+

its boring dont waste ur time

its just dumb and stupid i cant believe jennifer lawrence would star in this. i love suspence movies but a snail in an ice storm moves faster than this movie. there are a few kissing parts but like the love story is ridiculous srsly dont waste ur time
Keegs M.
Keegs M. Adult
September 11, 2016
age 13+

Corny Thriller Film Has A "Psycho-Like" Finale

The film House at the End of the Street is a little slow. It takes almost an hour of the film to build up the actual thrilling part. The story was good up until the ending which raises tons of questions left unanswered. Although a little confusing and off it is quite a thriller with a good twist in the story. There isn't as much violence that is expected in a thriller film, but it does provide. Nothing sexual and I don't think I heard more than a pair of curse words. But it wasn't totally amazing and was a solid meh all the run-through.
See all 8 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Teen Elissa (Jennifer Lawrence) and her single mom (Elisabeth Shue) move from busy Chicago into a giant home in a small town; they got it cheap because it's next door to a creepy house where a small girl apparently killed her parents. Having trouble fitting in, Elissa is drawn to the college-age Ryan (Max Thieriot), who lives in the murder house, even though nobody in town likes or trusts him. Unfortunately, Ryan appears to be hiding something, but can Elissa find out what it is before it's too late?

Is It Any Good?

This is one of those movies in which the nonsensical plot disintegrates the moment anyone starts asking questions. In 2011, another David Loucka screenplay, Dream House, attracted a top-notch cast and was turned into a terrible thriller. Amazingly, the exact same thing has now happened with another Loucka project, also with "House" in the title. The movie requires the characters to act stupidly to help move things forward, and if they had seen any other movies, they would know not to do these things.

Worse, the antagonist seems to have supernatural powers at various points -- able to sneak up on people or dispatch well-trained opponents -- but at other times is unable to hear characters creaking up the stairs. Oddly, the two Oscar-nominated leads, Shue and Lawrence, are quite affecting in the movie's straightforward scenes of character development. If HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET had only left all the dumb thriller stuff behind and concentrated on a mother-daughter drama, it might have gone somewhere.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the romantic relationship between the teen characters. Does it seem realistic? How is sex a factor?

  • House at the End of the Street includes several murders without very much violence and gore. Does it still make its point? How does it compare to other thrillers and horror movies you've seen?

  • Is the movie scary? Why or why not?

Movie Details

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