Because Amityville is an actual place, the name cant be copyrighted and is free to use by any huckster filmmaker, hence the existence of Amityville Dollhouse (1996), The Amityville Asylum (2013) and The Amityville Playhouse (2015). Unlike most horror franchises, Amityville didnt start out with one good movie that a bunch of hacks spent the next 4 decades trying to imitate, it started out with an ultra-hokey true story that wasnt even good for laughs, then became more and more ridiculous with each new picture. In amongst the straight-to-video detritus, youll find an actual film well, a Michael Bay-produced 2005 remake that owes more to The Shining than the original 1979 movie. Speaking of remakes, Amityville: The Awakening is due for release in April 2016, and if its a success theres plans for a prequel and a 3D sequel. Youve been warned. Worst Offender: Amityville Dollhouse. Would you give a replica of a haunted house to a child?
Ian Watson is the author of 'Midnight Movie Madness', a 600+ page guide to "bad" movies from 'Reefer Madness' to 'Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.'
