Amityville: The Awakening is one of many movies in the Amityville horror franchise, though it ignores all the previous installments, instead following up where the 1979 original left off. There are flashbacks to the original murders, plus jump scares and other scary stuff, plus blood stains, guns and shooting, stabbing, crashing through a window, creepy bugs, and arguing. Language includes a use of "f--k," several uses of "s--t," and more. A teen girl is shown wearing tight clothes at school and very revealing underwear at home. Although the film starts off with some good ideas and is a little better than most of the others in the series, it's still not that good.
The film is directed by Franck Khalfoun, director specialized in horror and suspense films, from his filmography we can rescue "Parking 2" (2007) and "Maniac" (2012), both written by Alexandre Aja (Piranha 3D, 2010).
WHAT'S THE STORY? the Walker family moves into the infamous Amityville house, home of so many brutal murders. Mother Joan (Jennifer Jason Leigh) hopes that the change will be good for her son, James (Cameron Monaghan), who's in a coma. But teen daughter Belle (Bella Thorne) is upset about having to move and feels that her mother loves her less than she does James. Belle meets Terrence (Thomas Mann) at school, and he introduces her to the Amityville Horror stories and movies, which she knew nothing about. Soon youngest daughter Juliet (Mckenna Grace) claims to have been "speaking" with James, and then James opens his eyes and appears to be recovering. But before long, the old horrors arise again.
MOVIE INFO Rating: R (for disturbing horror violence and terror, suggestive images, brief language and thematic material) Genre: Horror, Mystery & Suspense Directed By: Franck Khalfoun Written By: Franck Khalfoun In theaters: October 28, 2017 Runtime: 85 minutes Music: Robin Coudert Studio: Blumhouse Productions, Dimension Films, Miramax Films Cast: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Bella Thorn, Cameron Monaghan, Thomas Mann, Taylor Spreitler, McKenna Grace
Fuentes: CommonSenseMedia.org & RottenTomatoes.com
