This inspired 1979’s cinematic adaptation of the same name.
Starring James Brolin and Margot Kidder, the success of the film spawned a decade-spanningAmityville Horrorfranchise.
The first film would be remade in 2005, with Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George in the lead roles.
This ranges from the lore surrounding the haunting to the specifics of the event itself.
Here are the biggest differences between the various different versions ofThe Amityville Horror.
The book’s opening chapters are largely about that true crime, relaying the facts of the case.
Custom Image by Debanjana Chowdhury
In the original story and the 1979 film, the presence is seemingly demonic in nature.
The 1979 films ties this to a mysterious John Ketchum, who conducted Satanic rituals on the land.
This demonic influence is different in the 2005 film, which instead features more overt hauntings.
George and Kathy Lutz are recently married, with the latter having three children from a previous marriage.
However, the 2005 version ofThe Amityville Horrorleans more heavily into the tensionsbetween George and his new step-children.
Father Mancuso appears in the book and hears a voice demanding he get out of the building.
Ultimately, Mancuso escapes largely unscathed.
The hauntings continue, and Delaney doesn’t just suffer from fevers and blisters.
His car eventually goes haywire and he even ends up blind.
Instead, he reappears later in the film to warn the Lutz family to flee.
In the book, George is woken by the sound of an entire marching band downstairs.
By contrast,the 1979 film features a mysterious drummingthat brings George downstairs instead of an entire band.
The Amityville Horror is a 2005 horror film directed by Andrew Douglas. It stars Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George as George and Kathy Lutz, who move into a house in Amityville, New York, only to experience disturbing paranormal activities. The film is a remake of the 1979 classic and is based on the purportedly true events that inspired Jay Anson’s book of the same name.
When George eventually trips on the lion, he seems to have a clear bite mark on his foot.
Notably, the 2005 film largely did away with the lion, similar to the mysterious music.
In the original story and the 1979 film, Jodie is the apparent imaginary friend of Missy.
However, it’s steadily implied that Jodie is the demonic presence behind the haunting.
Jodie even follows the Lutz family when they flee the house in the original book.
Jodie is reimagined in the2005Amityville Horrorremakeas one of the DeFeo family who is killed by her older brother Ronald.
Jodie appears throughout the 2005 film as the imaginary friend of Chelsea Lutz, and frequently haunts the family.
Functionally, they fill the same role and experience the haunting first-hand.
However, their characters are very different.
However, all three end up deviating from one another in that revelation.
However, all three play different roles in the final stretch of the story.
These changes highlight the different ways the cinematic versions ofThe Amityville Horrorremix the original story for more visceral scares.
James Brolin and Margot Kidder star as the newlyweds George and Kathy Lutz.
The Amityville Horror is a 2005 horror film directed by Andrew Douglas.
