Amityville: Evil Never Dies

Lore & Background

The film opens with Rhode Island senator Ty Pangborn, after acquiring a clown painting implied to have originated from 112 Ocean Avenue, donning clown makeup and using a shotgun to kill his dysfunctional family during his son James' birthday party, then committing suicide while stating, 'This isn't funny.' A week later, a trio of thieves led by Drake break into the Pangborn residence seeking the painting and are murdered by a spectral clown, which rips out and eats Drake's heart. A priest interviewed about 112 Ocean Avenue explains that though the house was destroyed, its evil persists in objects scavenged from it—including a lamp, a clock, a mirror, a dollhouse, and a cymbal banging monkey toy—sold to oblivious buyers across the United States.

In Nebraska, Ben and his wife Michelle purchase the toy monkey from an antique shop called Jesse's Junk Drawer. The monkey causes nightmares about demons and 112 Ocean Avenue, terrorizes Michelle, and corrupts Ben, influencing him to beat and rape a prostitute and Michelle. The monkey alters Ben's memories so he no longer remembers his crimes and cannot see the wounds he inflicted. Michelle throws the monkey away, but it returns. She calls Jesse's Junk Drawer and learns the monkey came from the estate of Mark Janson, who slaughtered almost his entire family during a reunion in Lincoln. Michelle researches the Janson family massacre and visits the sole survivor, Mark's institutionalized daughter Julia, learning about the familicide committed by Ronald DeFeo Jr. at 112 Ocean Avenue, the cursed objects that instigate copycat crimes, and 'a theatre full of people that's possessed.'

Returning home, Michelle is attacked by a shotgun-wielding Ben, who declares she is to be sacrificed to Beelzebub. Michelle shoots the monkey with Ben's shotgun, and she and a recovered Ben flee. Jesse is then shown collecting the destroyed monkey, reassembling it, and putting it back up for sale in Jesse's Junk Drawer.

Reader's Guide

Amityville: Evil Never Dies is notable as the nineteenth film inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror and as a direct sequel to The Amityville Legacy (2016). It continues the franchise's focus on cursed objects from 112 Ocean Avenue, specifically a cymbal banging monkey toy. The film features a cast including Mark Patton, Helene Udy, Dawna Lee Heising, Ben Gothier, and Michelle Muir-Lewis. Critic Charlie Cargile of PopHorror noted the film's pacing issues and abrupt ending but described it as 'a solid film' with enjoyable 'micro-budget charm.' The film's plot incorporates elements of familicide, supernatural possession, and the spread of evil through scavenged household items, linking to the real-life DeFeo murders. Its direct-to-video release and low budget place it within the larger, often informal Amityville horror franchise, which has expanded through numerous sequels and spin-offs.

Did You Know?

• The film is also known as Amityville Clownhouse.
• It is the nineteenth film inspired by Jay Anson's 1977 novel The Amityville Horror.
• The film features a cymbal banging monkey toy that was taken from 112 Ocean Avenue.
• Critic Charlie Cargile of PopHorror described the film as having 'micro-budget charm.'