At least the disc restores the film to the correct 2:35 to 1 widescreen ratio, and a teaser trailer I'd never seen before is included too.
They COULD and SHOULD have included a field sequential 3-D version (for use with LCD shutter glasses) on the DVD as well as the modified flat print. That would at least approximate the theatrical experience at home. It's easily done, even a low budget film like THE CREEPS is now available in that format!
Don't be sorry they didn't include a terrible red/blue anaglyph conversion like they did on the recent British DVD release; that looks awful and nothing like the original 3-D anyway. Better to watch it flat than in the inferior anaglyph form.
Buy the box set; you'll also get parts one and two and a disc of documentaries, plus a ticket to see the new Amityville remake.
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This wonderful, underrated haunted house/ghost story has been lost to time owing to the fact that it is a. a (second) sequel, b. a sequel in a not very good film series (based on supposedly true events that everyone always pretty well knew weren't true at all), and c. a gimmick movie. But it's much better than that, and deserves a fresh look.Supernatural debunker Tony Roberts and his girlfriend Candy Clark, who run a magazine devoted to exposing charlatanry, obtain the notorious haunted Amityville house. Roberts refuses to recognize signs of genuine paranormal activity going on around them, but accedes to having scientific ghost phenomena researcher Robert Joy give the house a going-over after two of his loved ones die and a third loses her mind because of the house.
The production on this movie is really top-notch. It has very little jump-out-of-the-dark scare in it, more in the slow and sensually horrific mode. Though the finale goes a little over the top, virtually the entire film is handled like an adult version of Tobe Hooper's more childish Poltergeist. The supernatural phenomena are relatively realistic, for the most part. People hallucinate; they have accidents; voices are heard, or things are seen, but there is no obvious attribution to anything supernatural or demonic the phenomena simply are, that's all, and some people don't handle them well and end up coming to harm. And yet, there is an underpinning of evil to the entire proceedings that is quite effectively realized.
The cast are all terrific. Tess Harper is Roberts' estranged ex-wife, who loses her marbles quite convincingly as a result of her exposure to phenomena in the house. Lori Loughlin is their adorable daughter, whose best friend is a young and racy Meg Ryan. Veteran director Richard Fleischer keeps things moving nicely, without ever sacrificing the rich atmosphere.
The 3-D effects actually don't "fall flat," so to speak, in 2-D they still communicate pretty well, with clever camerawork that creates illusions of perspective in creepy fashion. The music score and cinematography are perfect the film has a dark look and feel, and the score is slow, low and eerie.
All in all though with occasional lapses a haunted house movie for the thinking adults. Well worth a watch.
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You ever want to have a little Halloween cheer, but you're absolutely pressed to get the house tidied up, or wash dishes, or do taxes? At ease, my friend: you've found the right horror flick in "Amityville 3 in 3-D", occasionally subtitled "The Demon". If you've pressed on through the series, then you may as well don your battle armor and go hand-to-claw with the vicious undead, if only to see a very young Meg Ryan with a ouija board.This half-hearted 1983 follow-up to its degenerate 1982 predecessor isn't half the monster "Amityville 2" is, but it's amusing if you're drunk or bored or busy, and it will put you in the Halloween spirit, guaranteed---and unlike "Amityville 2", it won't make you feel guilty for watching it afterward. Numero 3 in the trilogy of the nasty Long Island real-estate bargain introduces us to ghost-buster John Baxter (played by Woody Allen regular Tony Roberts, who plays along but still seems baffled to be here), who picks up that wicked colonial by the sea for a song after busting a fraudulent seance-ring (yeah, they were grasping by the time #3 came along). Despite the misgivings of colleague and sometime sweetie Melanie (Candy Clark, who lends dignity to the proceedings), Baxter buys the house lock stock & smoking barrel, despite the fact that the over-eager real estate agent dies soon after the deal is consummated, evidently from fly asphyxiation. Hey, if it's a steal on the East Coast---with a boat dock and a pool house, by God----you've gotta move on it!
Surprisingly, soon after demonic possession and other creepy shenanigans ensue, with innocent daughter Susan (Lori Laughlin, a bore but doing what she was paid to do) paying the price and a very young Meg Ryan (Lisa) getting to enjoy the ride. Will you enjoy it? If you're easily amused (like I am) and can be bribed with a bug-eyed gollum-esque demon, a nasty incineration death, and a spooky well/porthole-to-hell, then you'll be in good hands. And let's face it: director Richard Fleischer is an old Hollywood hand, a steely-eyed veteran director, who knows what he's doing---for Crom's sake, he directed "Soylent Green", "Doctor Dolittle", and "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"---this guy is the Winston Churchill of Directors! Trust him! Ultimately, though, Fleischer was in his autumn years, and after this flick he was lucky to helm "Red Sonja" and "Conan the Destroyer". I'm not kidding.
When it comes right down to it, where the rubber meets the road, "Amityville 3: The Demon" is a decent little horror movie, and will certainly occupy you (occasionally) while you double check the tax forms. Best of all, you can go on a munchies run and not miss much. Ah true, there's a ghoulish, shivery little sequence where Tony Roberts dreams his daughter is confined as a demonic mermaid in the well beneath the house, and that's shivery---truly, nightmarishly shivery. And did I mention "Amityville 3" is a shameless rip-off, particularly when it comes to lighting, of the far superior "Poltergeist"? If you know these things going in, though, you should enjoy yourself.
And more than anything, you'll know this: if the real estate agent promises something that sounds too good to be true, it's probably demon-possessed.
Honest reviews on Amityville 3-D : Widescreen Edition
Hello all I normally don't complaint about my orders from Amazon but this one really upset me I was planning a pajama party for my daughter and thought having 3-d movies will be a cool item. Received my movie and comes to find out the movie wasn't in 3-d format. To make a long story short the company needs to get into details letting their customers know that the movie isn't really in 3-d.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Amityville 3-D : Widescreen Edition
As a collector of 3-D movies that really work, this one is a total rip off!! Do not waste your time or money if you expect a 3-D experience. Movie was a bit out of focus, no viewing glasses included what so ever, and did not even work with any of the many different types of 3-D glasses that I own. Was not even worth the bother of returning it, so I threw it in the trash, do not believe everything you read! This DVD was totally misleading in its description.BEWARE!!!
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