Horror has the ability to captivate the psyche, maybe it’s the fear of what we have been taking for granted being threatened, maybe it’s due to the everyday security we take for granted. In short, we really enjoyed being scared by fiction, yet real life these experiences can be unpredictable. In the late 1970s, a horror story captivated collective audiences all over the world. A horror story that struck an everyday community, a horror story that ignited curiosities, A horror story that was allegedly real. A horror story by the name of Amityville.

November 1975, after an unfortunate murder spree, a young couple snap up a wonderful colonial home for quite cheap, considering the condition it is in. Despite the home’s perfect charms. Things aren’t all picturesque as the family begins to settle down, Strange noises are heard throughout the old house. Invisible friends leading to dangerous situations, visible hallucinations are frequent. While the dreadfulness of the grounds begins to make itself known, the unfortunate Lutz family is subjected to 28 days of a relentless nightmare.

The condition still hangs over the film of its existence as a true story, what is supposed to set this remake apart from the original book and the classic film is that this remake is supposed to be built on more information being made available. Making it more compelling to figure out how much of the shocking events depicted did occur. We know George Lutz was against the remake and attempted to sue, before passing away in 2006. Not only have some of the details have been updated in this remake, but the special effects have been as well.

The heads of the Lutz household are depicted by Ryan Reynolds, who will later go on to play a rather effective psychopath in the ghoulish comedy, The Voices. Melissa George also plays Kathy Lutz well, and she will later star in one of my personal favourite horror films, Triangle. Both here, manage to play the origins of these roles strongly. You can feel, George Lutz’s descent into paranoia so gradually and Melissa George manages to blend herself seamlessly into the role of the strong, yet compassionate mother.

The Amityville Horror updates the original story with new creepy effects and images, newer information, while still keeping the foundations of what made the original a runaway success in the 70s. The legend of the Amityville will stand like the house itself, maybe the facade will be updated as the years carry on, the terror will live on for eternity.

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