Sci Fi Wire have posted an article on the US release of An American Haunting. This is the first confirmation I've heard of the new version (rather than hearing forum gossip and speculation).
The article lists some interesting changes: For starters, the terrible voice-over has been replaced with a Sissy Spacek commentary, which eliminates one of my gripes with the UK version. Second: it sounds like the entire explanation for the haunting has been altered in this cut. Both of these changes might indicate that the modern book-end has been dropped – if the explanation isn't the same, the modern coda won't make any sense. The film has been rescored, and director Solomon says he's also re-done the "colour design" – which presumably means the terrible black and white transitions have been dropped. It sounds like most of James D'Arcy's part has been dropped too, which is no bad thing.
The most significant aspect of these changes is the suggestion that the film now plays less as a horror film, and more as a documentary on the haunting. Considering that the film's inability to scare was my biggest problem (which isn't to say that my other complaints weren't fairly sizeable), this sounds like a change for the better.
I know I said "I'd rather face the entire British army than watch this crap again" but I can't help but be intrigued; these changes would appear to address every one of my complaints. I'll have to wait for the DVD release to compare the two.
