The Amityville Asylum

Last updated
The Amityville Asylum
The Amityville Asylum film poster.png
Film poster
Directed by Andrew Jones
Written byAndrew Jones
Produced byAndrew Jones
StarringSophia Del Pizzo
Lee Bane
Jared Morgan
Eileen Daly
CinematographyVictoria Rodway
Edited byTom Perou
Music byJ. Andrew Jones
Production
companies
Independent Moving Pictures
North Bank Entertainment
Amityville Asylum Films
Distributed by4Digital Media
Release date
  • 3 June 2013 (2013-06-03)(United Kingdom)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$20,000 [1]

The Amityville Asylum (also known as The Nesting 2: Amityville Asylum) is a 2013 British horror film written and directed by Andrew Jones. It is the eleventh film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror . [2] [3] Sophia Del Pizzo stars as Lisa Templeton, a young woman who is hired to work as a custodian at High Hopes Psychiatric Hospital, an asylum that was built on the site of a haunted house in Amityville, New York. [4]

Contents

Plot

In 1974, a cloaked figure gives Ronald DeFeo Jr. a shotgun, which DeFeo uses to kill all six of his relatives at 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York. Decades later, the house is torn down and replaced by the High Hopes Psychiatric Hospital, which has just hired a new custodian named Lisa Templeton. Lisa is given a tour of the hospital by the maintenance man, Delaney, and told that she will be responsible for cleaning Ward X, a wing which houses criminally insane murderers like the sexual sadist Jerry Kimble, cannibalistic vigilante Dennis Palmer, occultist Sadie Krenwinkel, and a "Patient X" who is implied to be DeFeo. On her first night working at the hospital, Lisa encounters the ghost of Allison DeFeo, she is reprimanded for reporting this to the incredulous head of security, Hardcastle, and is sexually harassed by an orderly named Pemberton.

Palmer escapes from his cell one night and kills Pemberton before cannibalizing Kimble. He is subsequently tortured with electroshock equipment by Pemberton's fellow orderlies, and when Lisa witnesses this, she is browbeaten into silence by Hardcastle. Lisa researches the history of Amityville and discovers that, back in the 18th century, the Satchem, a Native American cult, settled in the area after being run out of Salem by Christians. The Satchem believed that making annual sacrifices of six people would result in them being gifted with immortality by a God called the Dark Master. The Satchem were eventually wiped out by a witch hunter named John Underhill and buried in a mass grave on the site of what would later become 112 Ocean Avenue. Krenwinkel is a member of a modern-day cult that has adopted the beliefs of the Satchem.

Lisa learns that Doctor Elliot Mixter, the owner of High Hopes, testified at Krenwinkel's trial; when she brings Mixter evidence that Krenwinkel has somehow acquired occult paraphernalia and access to the internet, he is revealed to be in league with Krenwinkel, and has Lisa unlawfully committed to Ward X. Lisa is broken out of her cell by Delaney while Mixter arms Patient X with a shotgun and sends him on a rampage through High Hopes. Patient X murders Krenwinkel, Palmer, and Hardcastle before going after Lisa and Delaney, who encounter possessed patients (one of whom rips his own face off) and Allison's ghost while trying to flee High Hopes. After Patient X kills Delaney, he is killed by Lisa. Lisa confronts Mixter, who taunts her into attacking him, which results in Lisa being gunned down by the NYPD. The massacre at High Hopes is blamed on Lisa.

A year later, Mixter gives a television interview, during which he cheekily implies that he is now immortal while promoting his book, High Hopes, Broken Dreams.

Cast

Release

The film had a limited theatrical run, and was released on DVD and video on demand, by 4Digital Media in the United Kingdom in 2013. [5] The following year the film was released on DVD and video on demand in North America by Hannover House. [6]

Reception

John Marrone of Bloody Disgusting found The Amityville Asylum to be mediocre at best, offering mild praise to its performances while noting that its violence was anemic and its story was weak, and that all in all it felt like it was "pasted together on the fly with novice experimentation." [7] Horror News was similarly critical of the film, giving it a score of 1/5 while calling it an "under-cooked mess" with "a boring first and second act with a third act that promises far more than it delivers." [8] While Ed Blackadder of INFLUX Magazine was critical of the film's direction and writing and gave it a D grade, he conceded that it was still "somewhat watchable" and "better than most of the micro-budget schlock I sit through." [1] Tex Hula ranked The Amityville Asylum as the fifth best of the twenty-one Amityville films that he reviewed for Ain't It Cool News, and concluded his coverage of it by writing, "Yeah, I kind of liked this one. It was a surprise. It has more effort and ambition than most of the sequels. It has a ballsy ending that I really liked." [9]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Amityville Horror</i> 1977 book by Jay Anson

The Amityville Horror is a book by American author Jay Anson, published in September 1977. It is also the basis of a series of films released from 1979 onward. The book is based on the claims of paranormal experiences by the Lutz family, but has led to controversy and lawsuits over its truthfulness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronald DeFeo Jr.</span> American mass murderer (1951–2021)

Ronald Joseph DeFeo Jr. was an American mass murderer who was tried and convicted for the 1974 killings of his father, mother, two brothers, and two sisters in Amityville, New York. Sentenced to six sentences of 25 years to life, DeFeo died in prison on March 12, 2021. The case inspired the book and film versions of The Amityville Horror.

<i>The Amityville Horror</i> (2005 film) 2005 horror film by Andrew Douglas

The Amityville Horror is a 2005 American supernatural horror film directed by Andrew Douglas and starring Ryan Reynolds, Melissa George, and Philip Baker Hall. It also featured the debut of actress Chloe Grace Moretz. Written by Scott Kosar, it is based on the novel The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson, which was previously adapted into the 1979 film of the same name, while also serving as the ninth film in the Amityville Horror film series, which documents the experiences of the Lutz family after they move into a house at 112 Ocean Avenue, Long Island. In 1974, real-life mass murderer Ronald DeFeo Jr. killed six members of his family at the same house in Amityville, New York.

<i>Amityville II: The Possession</i> 1982 Mexican-American supernatural horror film directed by Damiano Damiani

Amityville II: The Possession is a 1982 supernatural horror film directed by Damiano Damiani and starring James Olson, Burt Young, Rutanya Alda, Jack Magner, and Diane Franklin. The screenplay by Tommy Lee Wallace is based on the novel Murder in Amityville by the parapsychologist Hans Holzer. It is the second film in the Amityville Horror film series and a loose prequel to The Amityville Horror (1979), set at 112 Ocean Avenue and featuring the fictional Montelli family, loosely based on the DeFeo family. It follows the Montelli family's decline under apparent demonic forces present in their home.

<i>The Amityville Horror</i> (1979 film) 1979 film

The Amityville Horror is a 1979 American supernatural horror film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, and starring James Brolin, Margot Kidder, and Rod Steiger. The film follows a young couple who purchase a home haunted by combative supernatural forces. It is based on Jay Anson's 1977 book of the same name, which documented the alleged paranormal experiences of the Lutz family who briefly resided in the Amityville, New York home where convicted killer Ronald DeFeo Jr. committed the mass murder of his family in 1974. It is the first entry in the long-running Amityville Horror film series, and was remade in 2005.

<i>The Grudge 3</i> 2009 film by Toby Wilkins

The Grudge 3 is a 2009 American supernatural horror film directed by Toby Wilkins and written by Brad Keene. The film is a sequel to The Grudge 2 (2006) and the third installment in the American The Grudge film series. The film stars Johanna Braddy, Gil McKinney, Emi Ikehata, Jadie Rose Robson, Beau Mirchoff, and Shawnee Smith, with a special appearance by Matthew Knight. It features a linear plotline unlike all of its predecessors, which used nonlinear sequences of events for their respective plots and subplots.

The Amityville haunting is a modern folk story based on the true crimes of Ronald DeFeo Jr. On November 13, 1974, DeFeo shot and killed six members of his family at 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville, on the south shore of Long Island. He was convicted of second-degree murder in November 1975. In December 1975, George and Kathy Lutz and their three children moved into the house. After 28 days, the Lutzes left the house, claiming to have been terrorized by paranormal phenomena while living there. The house became the subject of numerous investigations by paranormal researchers, journalists, and skeptics, including Ed and Lorraine Warren. These events served as the historical basis for Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror, which was followed by a number of sequels and was adapted into a film of the same name in 1979. Since then, many films have been produced that draw explicitly, to a greater or lesser extent, from these historical and literary sources. As Amityville is a real town and the stories of DeFeo and the Lutzes are historical, there can be no proprietary relationship to the underlying story elements associated with the Amityville haunting. As a result of this, there has been no restriction on the exploitation of the story by film producers, which is the reason that most of these films share no continuity, were produced by different companies, and tell widely varying stories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Wingard</span> American director, screenwriter, editor, and composer

Adam Wingard is an American filmmaker. He has served as a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, actor, and composer on numerous American films.

<i>Amityville: The Awakening</i> 2017 film directed by Franck Khalfoun

Amityville: The Awakening is a 2017 American supernatural horror film written and directed by Franck Khalfoun and starring Bella Thorne, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Cameron Monaghan, Mckenna Grace, Thomas Mann, Taylor Spreitler, Jennifer Morrison, and Kurtwood Smith. It is the tenth installment of the Amityville film series and a direct sequel/metafilm taking place in the "real world" outside of the continuity of the series which establishes The Amityville Horror (1979), the sequels from 1982 to 1996, and the 2005 remake of the original film as fiction. Its plot follows a teenager who moves into 112 Ocean Avenue with her family, who shortly find themselves haunted by a demonic entity using her brain-dead twin brother's body as a vessel.

<i>The Amityville Playhouse</i> 2015 Canadian film

Amityville Playhouse is a 2015 horror film written and directed by John R. Walker, and co-written by Steve Hardy. It is the thirteenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. Monèle LeStrat stars as Fawn Harriman, a recently orphaned Dannemora high school student who inherits a mysterious abandoned theatre located in Amityville, New York.

<i>Amityville: Vanishing Point</i> 2016 American film

Amityville: Vanishing Point is a 2016 American horror film written and directed by Dylan Greenberg, and co-written by Selena Mars, Jurgen Azazel Munster, and Ezra Pailer. It premiered on video on demand before being released direct-to-video, and is the fourteenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. Selena Mars, Amanda Flowers, and Sara Kaiser star as the residents of an Amityville, New York boarding house that is plagued by paranormal activity after the mysterious death of their friend Margaret East.

<i>The Amityville Legacy</i> 2016 American film

The Amityville Legacy is a 2016 American horror film written and directed by Dustin Ferguson and Mike Johnson. It was released direct-to-video, and is the fifteenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. Mark Popejoy stars as Mark Janson, a father who begins murdering members of his own family after being gifted an evil cymbal-banging monkey toy that was taken from 112 Ocean Avenue, a haunted house in Amityville, New York.

<i>The Amityville Terror</i> 2016 American film

The Amityville Terror is a 2016 American horror film directed by Michael Angelo, and written by Amanda Barton. It was released direct-to-video, and is the sixteenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. Nicole Tompkins stars as Hailey Jacobson, the daughter of a dysfunctional family that is terrorized by both evil spirits and malicious townspeople after moving into a haunted house in Amityville, New York.

Dustin Ferguson is an American underground filmmaker from Lincoln, Nebraska. He has directed numerous music videos and more than 100 horror films since 2007, including The Amityville Legacy. He writes, directs and edits his own films and is known for his prolific output, releasing several feature films each year as well as for making mockbusters and sequels.

<i>Amityville: No Escape</i> 2016 American film

Amityville: No Escape is a 2016 American horror film written and directed by Henrique Couto, and co-written by Ira Gansler. It is the seventeenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. A found footage film, it follows two storylines, one set in 1997 and the other in 2016, that both involve 112 Ocean Avenue, a haunted house in Amityville, New York.

<i>Amityville Exorcism</i> 2017 American film

Amityville Exorcism is a 2017 American horror film directed by Mark Polonia, and written by Billy D'Amato. It was released direct-to-video, and is the eighteenth film to be inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror. The film stars Jeff Kirkendall as Father Benna, a Catholic priest who, with the help of a troubled father played by James Carolus, performs an exorcism on the man's daughter after the girl is possessed by a demon that originates from 112 Ocean Avenue, a haunted house in Amityville, New York. It was followed by two sequels, Amityville Island in 2020 and Amityville in Space in 2022.

<i>The Amityville Harvest</i> 2020 film by Thomas J. Churchill

The Amityville Harvest is a 2020 supernatural horror film written and directed by Thomas J. Churchill. The film stars Kyle Lowder, Sadie Katz, Brandon Alan Smith and Alexa Pellerin. It is the final Amityville Horror film series in which Ronald DeFeo Jr. served as the real-life mass murderer before his death on March 12, 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 Blackadder, Ed (21 August 2013). "The Amityville Asylum (Review)". influxmagazine.com. INFLUX Magazine. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  2. ↑ Robert E. Bartholomew and Joe Nickell (2015). American Hauntings: The True Stories behind Hollywood's Scariest Movies from The Exorcist to The Conjuring. Praeger. p. 96. ISBN   9781440839689 . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  3. ↑ Christopher Berry-Dee (2020). Serial Killers at the Movies: My Intimate Talks with Mass Murderers who Became Stars of the Big Screen. Ad Lib Publishers. ISBN   9781913543839. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  4. ↑ Miska, Brad (19 March 2013). "Enter the The Amityville Asylum Trailer, Loosely Based On 1974 Story..." bloody-disgusting.com. Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  5. ↑ Barton, Steve (2013). "Exclusive Teaser Trailer: The Amityville Asylum; First Distro News". dreadcentral.com. Dread Central . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  6. ↑ Barton, Steve (2013). "The Amityville Asylum To Open Stateside". dreadcentral.com. Dread Central . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  7. ↑ Marrone, John (15 January 2014). "[BD Review]The Amityville Asylum – Kill Them All". bloody-disgusting.com. Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  8. ↑ Rotten, Doc (13 October 2013). "Film Review - The Amityville Asylum (2013)". horrornews.net. Horror News. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  9. ↑ Hula, Tex (4 February 2019). "AICN's Tex Hula Reviews The Amityville Murders and ALL other Amityville Films! A Look into Madness!". aintitcool.com. Ain't It Cool News . Retrieved 3 March 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.