Amityville: A New Generation (1993)

Directed by: John Murlowski
Starring: Ross Partridge, Julia Nickson-Soul, Lala Sloatman
Written by: Christopher DeFaria, Antonio M. Toro
Music by: Daniel Licht
Country: United States
Available on: Blu-ray (Vinegar Syndrome)
IMDb

Amityville: A New Generation is the second in a trinity of ‘90s direct-to-video sequels in the Amityville franchise featuring haunted objects — in this case, a mirror. Although penned by the same two writers who did 1992’s Amityville: It’s About Time, which is a very decent horror film despite its focus on a spooky clock, this entry is mostly tiresome. This one follows Keyes (played by Ross Partridge, looking a lot like an older, burnt out Harry Potter with robustly floppy hair), a photographer living in an artists’ commune who’s a descendant of the Bronner family, who slaughtered each other in the Amityville house before the DeFeo family slaughtered each other in the Amityville house before the Lutz family nearly slaughtered each other in the Amityville house. The first half is especially daunting, wherein you’re subjected to a whole lot of bullshit banter about the power of art from crappy artists. None of the main characters are remotely interesting, though there are plenty of familiar faces in the supporting cast, obviously hungry for a paycheck, like David Naughton, Lin Shaye, Terry O’Quinn, Richard Roundtree, and Tom Wright. Normally, the seventh film in a franchise that long ceased caring about what made the original movie work would at least attempt to satisfy base horror hound desires with gore, sex, or weirdness. But A New Generation eschews most of that in favor of a dreary, dull exploration of Keyes’ past with a DTV aesthetic. The last third introduces a wee bit of excitement, but tamps it down with a climax that has all the sustained excitement of a 70-year-old man who lost his Viagra. This is a movie without a sense of humor, purpose, identity, or artistry, and its only saving grace is its reasonably competent cast. Thankfully, it’s a short wait before the franchise rediscovers its knack for moderate satisfaction with Amityville Dollhouse in 1996.

Overall rating: 3 out of 10