Amp House Massacre review
Stop us if you’ve heard this one…there’s a new horror movie that targets influencers.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
Amp House Massacre
Directed by Dame Pierre and Mike Ware
Written by Dame Pierre and Mike Ware
Starring Kara Royster, Pedro Correa, Ana Osorio, Cassandra Scerbo, Chris O’Neal, Kyle Matthew and Rafael Cebrián
Amp House Massacre Review
Influencer Horror has become so popular at this point that we’ve already spent more time discussing the ins and outs of the sub-genre than we probably should have. Just look up any number of recent reviews of similar releases to see what I mean. Amp House Massacre gives us more of it…and it does so with a bit more interest than your average Influencer Horror movie.
A group of influencers living together in the Hollywood Hills find themselves fighting to survive the wrath of a masked killer. It’s the anniversary of their former leader’s death by overdose. Whoever is behind this massacre wants more than blood…they want to expose the group for the liars that they are. Truths will be exposed. Blood will be shed.
Amp House is the name of the mansion where the film takes place. Originally conceived by Mario (Dallas Hart) as a home for the hottest influencers to live together and collaborate, it’s fallen on tough times since Mario’s overdose. Followers aren’t climbing the way that they used to. Can you imagine anything worse than that? We join the story as the one-year anniversary of Mario’s passing approaches. In an effort to freshen things up…the group (somewhat reluctantly) invites a new influencer to join them. It’s a clever way to introduce us to the world of Amp House through equally fresh eyes.
The newbie in the house is Amanda (Ana Osorio). The more reluctant members of the house accept her arrival due to her wealth and clean image. They’re trying to rebrand, you see. That early admission is an interesting way of indicating that they have dirt on their hands. Hunter (Pedro Correa) is the only house member who sees to care about it. He’s tormented by something while the rest of the house seems to be happy in their vapid ignorance. That’s one of the staples of Influencer Horror. Influencers are often portrayed as phony, if not horrible, people. That’s what makes it so fun to watch them die.
And die they do. Amp House Massacre provides us with a large cast with designs on eliminating almost every one of them. Russell (Motoki Maxted) is the first to go. As a noted prankster…most of the house initially assumes he is pulling something. In fact, they question it even after his body is pulled from the pool he drowned in. They know this isn’t a game (or at least not the one they think it is) when the killer contacts them with a list of rules for survival. No calling the police. No blocking the killer’s number. And those cameras that are filming 24/7 inside Amp House? No turning those off.
The killer believes that every member of the house is responsible for Mario’s death. He’s going to expose (and dispatch) them all. Members of the house include Eddie (Kyle Matthew), Lonnie (Chris O’Neal), Jaden (Rafael Cebrian), Niko (Brandon Perea), Tiffany (Cassandra Scerbo) and Janelle (Kara Royster). Don’t get too attached to any of them. They face permanent expulsion from Amp House along with their deepest secrets being exposed.
The plot of Amp House Massacre is fairly standard for movies of this type. It suffers from an equally standard problem. There isn’t much reason to care about most of these characters. It also can’t go hog wild with kills scenes…but that’s so common in low budget horror it barely deserves acknowledgement. And that’s where Amp House Massacre could have lived…comfortably among the cavalcade of similar movies that have fueled this oddly specific movie craze. The good news for Amp House Massacre is that it isn’t content with that.
Amp House Massacre manages to surprise in the third act. A movie full of strong energy builds to a fresh conclusion. In the end this is a movie that’s not great…but not terrible either. We’ve certainly seen worse in the influence horror genre. Benefiting from fast pacing and good energy but lacking many characters to care about. An easy watch that ends up showing off a new move or two when you least expect it.
Scare Value
The biggest issue with Amp House Massacre is how many movies nearly exactly like it exist. Influencer Horror has become an epidemic in low budget independent circles. Even when a movie makes some new moves, as is the case here, you can’t help but feel like it’s a victim of overkill. The good news is that Amp House Massacre has more fun with it than most. If you’ve been avoiding this specific sub-genre of horror (congratulations to you if that’s the case) …you could find far worse places to start.
2.5/5
Amp House Massacre Links
Rent/Buy on VOD from Fandango at Home and Amazon
