Remaking a classic film is always a touchy endeavor, even if it is a classic B-level horror movie like “The Amityville Horror,” a movie that was filled with camp and cheese when it came out in 1979. At the time, few people found it more funny then scary, which gave rise to the question: Would the remake be just as campy and cheesy, or would it try to scare the pants off the new audience?

Judging by its trailer, the new “Amityville Horror” looked like it was going to be a re-release of the original, since they captured the look of the ’70s so well. It made me speculate at first that this movie, much like the original, would be nothing but a rehash of late ’70s camp horror, trying to sell nostalgia to a new audience and maybe their parents.

Boy howdy, was I wrong.

The 8mm look of the cinematography only helped the remake, giving it the home movie feeling, augmenting the “based on a true story” plotline.

“The Amityville Horror” tells the tale of a family who moves into a house that is pure evil, thanks to the killings that happened there over the years. The remake has far more believable acting and imagery than the original that, when combined, add a much darker feeling to the film. The movie follows the original screenplay almost to a ‘T’, but with the stronger cast and the cutting out of the camp, this movie is a touch scarier and feels less like a joke.

Some of the notable scenes in this movie are when George Lutz (Ryan Reynolds) is being driven crazy by the house. He takes his son Billy (Jesse James) out to chop wood and forces him to hold the logs as he is bringing the ax down, calling it father-son bonding. The scene is very intense and you can feel the insanity burning in George’s eyes and the massive amount of terror that Billy is feeling as his father brings the ax down. The girl who plays Jodie Defeo (Isabel Conner) does the classic “creepy little girl” thing very well, eliciting screams and gasps from the audience at a few points in the film.

Although it is a remake of a classic horror movie, “Amityville” is one of those rare remakes that is better then the original. It is still fun to see and will cause your heart to race, but is very predictable, not only because it is a remake that follows the old script almost scene for scene, but also because it is pretty much your standard horror flick.

If you want something fun with little substance to see this weekend, check out “The Amityville Horror.” It’s worth a matinee ticket and an hour and a half of your time.