Mirror Mirror On The Wall: Who Is The Worst Amityville Of Them All
Oh the horror! The streak of rotten "Amityville Horror" sequels continues in "Amityville: A New Generation." In the direct-to-video affair, an up-and-coming photographer (Ross Partridge, whose credentials include (1) episode of "In Living Color" as well as playing "Businessman" in the "Prom Night" remake) brings a haunted mirror back to his hip and happening pad. It's not long before the mirror starts distorting reality, shedding some light on the wannabe-artist's past as well as threatening his circle of friends which includes Shaft and Asian-Shannon Doherty in its ranks. Yet another "Amityville" flick where the "Horror" happens outside of the iconic house from the Margot Kidder/James Brolin original, it's no surprise to find "A New Generation" deviating even further from the original formula than before.
Not that twisting the formula is such a bad thing -- it sort of worked in "Amityville 1992: It's About Time" (sort of) -- but the execution leaves quite a bit to be desired. For those keeping score, "Amityville: A New Generation" is the seventh installment in the shockingly long-winded and consistently mediocre "Amityville Horror" franchise. It's to be expected that the film isn't exactly top-notch material, but even judging it as a b-movie doesn't do it justice. The plot, if you can call it that, is really just an excuse for the presence of some admittedly cool paintings and softcore nudity (its only redeeming features, really). The horror in this "Amityville Horror" is in its banality. There is simply no tension to be found, and the bloodshed is kept to a minimum. Add this to the fact that hardly anybody in the film (save for Roundtree and Terry O'Quinn, cashing a check in an otherwise thankless role) can act to save their lives, and you have one very tepid experience.
Even those who lapped up the schlock served up in the silly movie-of-the-week "Amityville 4: The Evil Escapes" or even the aforementioned 1992 affair will be hard-pressed to find anything redeeming about "A New Generation." To be quite frank, it's a chore to sit through and even when the film tries to twist things in an effort to re-connect itself to its roots, it just doesn't work. Whatever thrills were to be had with this premise were squeezed out by the anemic sequels that came before. Even if you enjoy cinematic junk food like this, approach with caution. This is not only the "Amityville" franchise at its worst, but also bottom-of-the-barrel even as far as '90s horror and DTV fare go.
Oh the horror! The streak of rotten "Amityville Horror" sequels continues in "Amityville: A New Generation." In the direct-to-video affair, an up-and-coming photographer (Ross Partridge, whose credentials include (1) episode of "In Living Color" as well as playing "Businessman" in the "Prom Night" remake) brings a haunted mirror back to his hip and happening pad. It's not long before the mirror starts distorting reality, shedding some light on the wannabe-artist's past as well as threatening his circle of friends which includes Shaft and Asian-Shannon Doherty in its ranks. Yet another "Amityville" flick where the "Horror" happens outside of the iconic house from the Margot Kidder/James Brolin original, it's no surprise to find "A New Generation" deviating even further from the original formula than before.
Not that twisting the formula is such a bad thing -- it sort of worked in "Amityville 1992: It's About Time" (sort of) -- but the execution leaves quite a bit to be desired. For those keeping score, "Amityville: A New Generation" is the seventh installment in the shockingly long-winded and consistently mediocre "Amityville Horror" franchise. It's to be expected that the film isn't exactly top-notch material, but even judging it as a b-movie doesn't do it justice. The plot, if you can call it that, is really just an excuse for the presence of some admittedly cool paintings and softcore nudity (its only redeeming features, really). The horror in this "Amityville Horror" is in its banality. There is simply no tension to be found, and the bloodshed is kept to a minimum. Add this to the fact that hardly anybody in the film (save for Roundtree and Terry O'Quinn, cashing a check in an otherwise thankless role) can act to save their lives, and you have one very tepid experience.
Even those who lapped up the schlock served up in the silly movie-of-the-week "Amityville 4: The Evil Escapes" or even the aforementioned 1992 affair will be hard-pressed to find anything redeeming about "A New Generation." To be quite frank, it's a chore to sit through and even when the film tries to twist things in an effort to re-connect itself to its roots, it just doesn't work. Whatever thrills were to be had with this premise were squeezed out by the anemic sequels that came before. Even if you enjoy cinematic junk food like this, approach with caution. This is not only the "Amityville" franchise at its worst, but also bottom-of-the-barrel even as far as '90s horror and DTV fare go.