Surprisingly decent.

The original The Amityville Horror was one of the worst horror films I'd had the hardship of enduring. Hollywood is renowned for remaking horror films with the thought in mind of improving upon the original. Because the original film was so dreadful and ineffective I realised that it wouldn’t be too challenging to construct a superior film. And hence, this updated version of The Amityville Horror is one of the first Hollywood horror remakes that I found to be of genuinely decent quality.

This remake is superior to the original in terms of production values and quality of the filmmaking. The original concept was screaming for a remake...and it finally received what it was looking for.

George (Reynolds) and Kathy (George) Lutz move into a Long Island home that was the site of a grisly mass murder several years ago. Not long after moving in, the whole family begin seeing disturbing images of ghosts and horribly demented figures. After a priest discovers that the house is haunted with satanic spirits, he warns them to get out of the house before it's too late.

The original production was a laughably woeful film that was dumb and wasn't scary. The one thing I had hoped for was at least a higher scream rate with this remake. Thankfully, it delivered. Some of the ghastly images had me squirming in my seat. Not to mention a few genuinely spine-chilling moments that caused me to have goose-bumps running over my body. Due to this remake's terrifying nature your eyes will be glued to the screen.

Kudos to the director for his ability to keep the audience enthralled during the intense horror scenes that are kept very taut. And of course the music is another filmmaking aspect that had to be done correctly in order to inspire the appropriate atmosphere. The music here was great and set the tone capably.

Ryan Reynolds is an actor I usually see in comedic roles. Whenever I see the man I usually laugh at his mannerisms and witty dialogue. But here Reynolds displays his potential as a serious actor. Sure there's the odd occasional moment when it's suitable to have a laugh but when he begins to turn evil...Reynolds is quite something. I never would have imagined him doing such a good job in a horror movie. Melissa George is a little clichéd at times but delivers a very good performance from start to finish. I guess she did all she was able to do with a bit of an iffy screenplay.

One of the only shortcomings of the film is its screenplay. At times it's rather dumb. In spite of saying that, some of the dialogue was quite realistic and skilfully written.

The Amityville Horror was a complete surprise for me. Because of how appalling its source material was I had never expected such admirable results. Evidently the film is far from brilliant - but considering how bad the film could have been the effort is outstanding. The Amityville Horror is a rare event that proves there is at least a glimmer of hope for the future of horror remakes. Trust me, I take a strong stand against horror remakes and don't want any others to get the green light; however this particular production is highly enjoyable. For horror buffs, this is a must.