The Times Again

Since I'm on kind of an Amityville kick, here's the New York Times review of the new The Amityville Horror. Unlike with that terrible review from the Lemony Snicket guy, I don't have that many quibbles with this particular review.

Okay, I do have two complaints. First, it really annoys me when people (especially reviewers) say that it took the characters in the movie far too long to realize that the house was haunted, something was in the shed, etc. This is flawed logic. The characters are not supposed to know that they are in a movie! The events in Amityville take place after the family stretched themselves to the very last dime to move into their dream house, and they're supposed to run screaming for the front door the first time something strange happens? I think that's a flawed view of human nature and our ability to rationalize away things that don't fit with our view of what should be. Now, I will admit that sometimes movies do push this to unrealistic levels, but most of the time this kind of complaint does get on my nerves.

Second, the re-make of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was "serviceable"? I think that even this tepid endorsement is vastly overstated. As I've mentioned before, that movie excelled only in its awfulness.