The Montellis move into an old house that soon shows
scary signs of the supernatural. Or is it just the anger and fear of its
new inhabitants?
"Amityville II: The Possession", based on the book "Murder in Amityville" (1979) by Hans Holzer, gives us a little bit of insight into the origins of "The Amityville Horror" (1979). Evil spirits have taken hold of the old mansion, but it's a bit of a guessing game where they actually come from. The Montelli family isn't your perfect TV family, esp. the dad is a deeply tormented person. Everything spirals increasingly out of control, and both visually and audibly the movie takes the viewer on quite a journey.
There's a
priest and some exorcism, there's gore and a little bit of slime, a
gothic basement, some monstrous transformation, a bit of sleaziness...
When some green and red lights show up, you can't help but think "Bava!
Italy!" - and indeed, director Damiano Damiani is Italian, and has
directed a lot of Italian crime movies, meaning gialli, so it's
no big surprise that "Amityville II" has a somehow different feel to it
than the slightly more ethereal "Amityville Horror". There are
similarities to the unhinged "Patrick Still Lives" (1980), but
"Amityville II" is less gory, and keeps the sleaze at far less
outrageous levels.
Overall, the impression is a little more blunt than "Amityville Horror". Some of the special effects are quite obvious, the characters are a little less detailed, and "Amityville II" chooses some more visceral visuals, where its predecessor would go for more mysticism.
Is it fun to watch? Yes, it is. Seeing Burt Young in a movie is always enjoyable, the child actors are convincing, and the rest of the cast gives a solid and passionate performance, too. Lalo Schifrin provides a great soundtrack, some scenes are creepy, some are reasonably funny, there's some interesting cinematography here and there, and the pacing of the events easily keeps you occupied.
The
examination of the dysfunctional family falls a bit flat on its face,
and there's a plot-hole or two - but if you're looking for some cheap
thrills, you get a nice, somehow spooky, not too profound, little
haunted house flick.
Verdict: Closer to cinecitta than to Amityville. 5/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083550/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amityville_II:_The_Possession
Trailer video:
* * *
Want to read another movie review? Click here to see all.
No comments:
Post a Comment