AMITYVILLE: THE AWAKENING (2017) ***

I feel like I’ve been waiting forever to see this movie.  The release date kept getting pushed back January after January until Dimension took it off their schedule completely.  Now, in the wake of the Weinstein scandal, it’s been dumped on Google Play.  FOR FREE.  Man, I was totally willing to pay $12 to see this in the theater!  Now I get to watch it absolutely free.  Not only was it worth the wait, I got my money’s worth out of it too! 

Ginger goddess Bella Thorne moves into the Amityville house with her overbearing mother (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and her braindead vegetable twin brother.  Bella learns from her classmates the horrifying history of the house about the same time her brother starts making a miraculous recovery.  Is he really getting better or is the house possessing him to do its evil bidding? 

Amityville:  The Awakening was directed by Franck Khalfoun, director of the underappreciated P2, and he brings the same slick efficiency that he brought to that gem.  Khalfoun gives us a few genuinely effective moments (like a window opening on its own) as well as a grisly updating of the original’s fly sequence.  He also does a fine job at orchestrating the family drama within the house.  The strained relationship between Thorne and Leigh (who are well-cast as daughter and mother) is absorbing and the tension between them is genuine. 

Even though it’s PG-13, it still has a creepy vibe.  Honestly, with a few edits, this could probably play on Lifetime, what with the family squabbling and all.  Since Lifetime Movies are a guilty pleasure of mine, it really fired on all cylinders for me.   

What makes The Awakening so much fun is that it exists in the “real” world.  The DeFeo murders that happened in the house are “real”, but the entire Amityville film series are just that:  movies.  In fact, one of Thorne’s classmates bring over the original 1979 Amityville Horror so they can watch it together.  He also suggests they watch the Ryan Reynolds remake, but she shoots him down.  “Remakes totally blow!”  There is no mention however of Amityville 3-D though.  Bummer.   

For all of its creepy moments at meta references, the movie really belongs to Bella Thorne.  Wearing a wardrobe that consists of a variety of sexy goth/punk outfits and black lipstick, she always commands your attention.  It doesn’t hurt that half the movie features her in booty shorts walking down hallways and investigating strange noises.  Not only is she smoking hot, she gives a great performance as well.  She really holds her own acting alongside Jennifer Jason Leigh, which is a testament to her abilities.   

AKA:  Amityville:  The Reawakening.