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1983 - USA Directed By: Richard Fleischer. Starring: Tony Roberts, Tess Harper, Robert Joy, Candy Clark, John Beal, Leora Dana, John Harkins and Meg Ryan.
Aka
Amityville III: The Demon
Current Availability
Freely available worldwide in multiple DVD editions. The most satisfying version is probably the UK R2 2-Disc Special Edition from Sactuary which presents the choice of viewing the film in either a standard version or in its original 3-D - complete with two sets of 3-D specs! In addition the Sanctuary release also includes a generous helping of extras. Unfortunately this valiant attempt to polish a turd now appears to be OOP.
Recommended
Not recommended in the slightest. This is a nondescript, dull, formulaic horror sequel that falls far short of its predecessors, delivering neither scares or interest. A dreadfully dull and lifeless excuse for a horror film.
Review
The true beginning of the superfluous continuation of the tiresome and seemingly never-ending saga of the dubiously “haunted” house in Amityville, Long Island. Amityville III: The Demon, released simply as Amityville 3-D in many territories, starts out of decidedly shaky ground, the supposedly true tale of the Lutz family and their experiences with the supernatural whilst living at the famous property that formed the basis of Jay Anson’s bestselling novel and the subsequent films having long since been seen through for the risible tabloid magazine fairytale it so obviously was.
Lacking either the base horror of Stuart Rosenberg’s original The Amityville Horror (1979) or the gritty, brutality of Damiano Damiani’s highly undervalued prequel Amityville II: The Possession (1982), instead Amityville III witnesses the end of the series’ credibility, resorting as it does to formulaic hokum and even worse – cheap, tacky, gimmickry. A blatant attempt by backer Dino De Laurentiis to milk as much capital as possible from the Amityville name, Amityville III never once deviates from the tediously overworked “skeptical man moves into a haunted house and…” scenario and in addition the film even throws in a chain of unconvincing 3-D effects in a desperate attempt to get bums on seats.
Tony Roberts stars as John Baxter – a magazine journalist who specializes in investigating and debunking fraudulent psychics. Baxter’s latest magazine exposé sees him blowing the cover of a phony medium racket operating out of the notorious 112 Ocean Avenue, located in Amityville, Long Island – a house with a much documented history and murder, diabolism and, if rumours are to be believed, supernatural phenomena.
During his investigation Baxter discovers that the property is going for a song, potential buyers having been put off by its reputation as a haunted house. Being a vocal skeptic when it comes to the supernatural, Baxter opts to purchase the property and promptly moves in, openly dismissive of all the wild tales surrounding the houses past. Yet once Baxter takes up residence, a series of inexplicable occurrences gradually force the cynical journalist to question his initial skepticism. When his beloved daughter Susan (Loughlin) is killed in a freak boating accident Baxter is finally forced to confront the all prevailing evil lingering within the accursed property.
Following on from his unfathomably dreadful Neil Diamond vehicle The Jazz Singer (1980), late director Richard Fleischer continues to piss his status as a cinematic legend up the wall with Amityville III. Made during the best forgotten early eighties revival of the old 3-D gimmick, one of the unfortunate motivations behind the brief 3-D revival was to provide a superficial smokescreen for financially motivated, otherwise unnecessary horror sequels. If one wants any of evidence of this look no further than Friday The 13th Part III and Jaws 3-D (both 1982) for evidence – both tired continuations that had nothing to offer other than the gimmick of 3-D effects. Nowhere however, is this regrettable tendency better epitomised the in the case of Amityville III. By this point the series had indeed ventured so far into the realm of blatantly fictional formulaic, horror cliché’s that its distributor Orion, fearing a backlash, hilariously saw fit to feature a prominent disclaimer on the films original poster denying any link between this film and the supposedly “real” events that had inspired its two predecessors.
Despite his illustrious directorial legacy Fleischer had more or less no experience within the horror genre and therefore the film becomes unfortunately resigned to rehashing all the usual staples and clichés of the done to death haunted house movie. Viewers are treated to predictable “shocks” as incidental characters are smothered by a horde of flies and sudden bursts of hurricane wind rip through the house for no apparent reason. Meanwhile protagonists shuffle tentatively through the house and burst into a hysterical bout of screaming at the slightest fright. Why? – Because that’s what players in cheesy, bad horror films with no original ideas do! It’s all seriously underwhelming stuff to be sure, dishearteningly tame (save for one nasty burned visage) and with shocks so heavily signposted and utterly predictable as to register little to no impact at all. Perhaps the only sequence that really comes close to being in any way chilling is the opening séance, which is actually fairly tense and atmospheric in its execution. Yet even this is highly derivative of a suspiciously similar scene in Peter Medak’s infinitely superior haunted house chiller The Changeling (1980) and whatever tone the opening may have established is totally tarnished when the stance is abruptly unveiled as a sham.
Being that they constitute the films main selling point there is a great emphasis placed upon the 3-D effects, which are actually fairly well done, but would one expect anything less from the same team that made jaws drop with their work on Poltergeist (1982). Unfortunately, as is often the case with the 3-D process, it is utilised as a superficial substitute for creating anything in anyway substantial or tangible. After all why take the time to build up a chilling atmosphere or sense of tension when you can just as easily jolt the audience by tossing a Frisbee towards the camera lens? The effects anti-extravaganza eventually culminates in an overwrought if semi-dramatic finale which sees the protagonists faced with the physical manifestation of the houses evil (the demon of the title). Although the SFX are typically solid this final “big shock” is as totally mechanical in its effect as a ghost train exhibit and not even mildly scary. In any case the already negligible impact of the 3-D effects is nullified completely when the film is viewed in flat 2-D on VHS or DVD, bearing in mind that the 3-D process has never been satisfactorily recreated on any home entertainment format.
On top of these myriad faults Amityville III also largely wastes the talents of a halfway reasonable cast. Tony Roberts’ enters a committed lead performance which is undermined by the writing. John Baxter’s tendency to condescendingly dismiss others encounters with the houses otherworldly occupants renders him foolish-looking and unsympathetic no matter how much Roberts applies himself in the role. If I really wanted to I could be especially venomous in my assessment of a certain Miss Candy Clark’s “performance” but as I have already said enough disparaging things about this film (albeit with ample justifications) I will merely state that she makes her Oscar winning supporting turn in American Graffiti (1973) feel as if it occurred much longer ago than just ten years prior. One rare point of note for Amityville III however, is that it marks the debut of future star Meg Ryan, although she is really given little room to distinguish herself here.
As it happens Amityville III would be greeted coolly by both critics and audiences alike, failing to recapture the success or popularity of its predecessors. In fact Amityville III would be the last film in the original series of Amityville movies to enjoy a theatrical release, with all subsequent installments debuting either on video or television. With each passing film the series would sink further into the mire of contrived desperation as increasingly silly narratives saw characters menaced by spirits carried into fresh homes by artefact's and trinkets originating from the original Amityville property. Needless to say the series would soon become the bane of video stores horror sections everywhere. As for Amityville III, while not outright dreadful, on the whole it is completely indifferent. Totally devoid of any discernible flavour or atmosphere Amityville III really disappoints in its reliance on the insubstantial and superficial for its “effect”. A few predictable, push button jolts amidst the overriding sense of absolute banality providing a scant ward for the viewer’s attention. THE THIRD DIMENSION IN BOREDOM!
Also Try: The Amityville Horror (1979, Stuart Rosenberg) / Amityville II: The Possession / Burnt Offerings / The Changeling / The Legend Of Hell House.
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