10 differences between the Amityville horror movie and book

The Amityville Horror Has become a staple of the horror genre, but there are many differences between the original book and the two films it is directly inspired by. Based on a supposedly true story of a haunting in upstate New York, Jay Anson’s book Thand Amityville Horror became a smash hit when it was released in 1977. It inspired 1979’s cinematic adaptation of the same name. Starring James Brolin and Margot Kidder, the success of the film spawned a decade-spanning Amityville Horror Franchise. The first film would be remade in 2005, with Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George in the lead roles.

Although both versions of the horror movie are based on the true story of the book and share the same characters, there are several Notable differences between the book and the films it inspired. This ranges from the lore surrounding the haunting to the specifics of the event itself. There are even some ideas that appear only in the two films but not the book, and aspects of the original book that were not recreated for the big screen. Here are the biggest differences between the different versions of The Amityville Horror.

10

The Amityville Horror opens differently between versions

The book and 2005 remake are more openly “based on a true story.”

One of the biggest differences between The Amityville Horror Comes from the very beginning of the first cinematic adaptation, with The original book and the 2005 film lean heavily into the “true crime” elements of the story. The Amityville Horror Takes inspiration from the real-life events of the DeFeo murders. The opening chapters of the book are largely about true crime, recounting the facts of the case. The 2005 film reinforces this element of the story during a montage after the film’s opening, showing news footage of the event and highlighting how the film is “based on true events.”

rather, The 1979 version of The Amityville Horror is more character-driven Which is not so difficult in this aspect of the story. Although the film establishes the real-life origins of the event, the film is more focused on the Lutz family moving into the house, skipping the closer attention to realistic detail that appears in the other two versions of the story. This sets the 1979 film to be a more standard horror movie, while the book and 2005 movie tried to highlight that the horror that inspired the film had real inspirations.

9

The nature of the Amityville hauntings are different

There are many more ghostly sightings in the 2005 film

While all three versions of The Amityville Horror have a supernatural force in the Amityville house, The exact specifics of the entity are different in the two films. In the original story and the 1979 film, the presence is seemingly demonic in nature. The entity that owns the house is quietly mysterious and dangerous, driving George to the brink of madness and targeting the family. The 1979 films link this to a mysterious John Ketchum, who conducted satanic rituals on Earth. The demonic influence is different in the 2005 film, which instead features more overt hauntings.

The 2005 movie features the spirit of Reverend Jeremiah KetchumA sinister figure from centuries earlier whose influence takes over George and unleashes him on the rest of the family in the film’s climax. The 2005 movie also features the ghost of Jodie DeFeo, who haunts the family but is implied to be doing so in part to scare them away from the same supernatural forces that led to her family’s deaths.

8

The 2005 Amityville horror is more focused on the family dynamic

George’s drama with the family is more pronounced in the 2005 remake

One element of The Amityville Horror What is consistent in all three versions is the presence of the Lutz family. George and Kathy Lutz were recently married, with the latter having three children from a previous marriage. This detail is not important in the book or the 1979 movie, because the family is more or less united. However, the 2005 version of The Amityville Horror Puts more effort into the tensions Between George and his new stepchildren.

This is obvious with the difference between George and the oldest of Cathy’s children, Billy. The two have multiple combative moments during the film, and an increasingly unstable George even silently threatens Billy in the 2005 film. While the George of the 1979 film became more aggressive and short-tempered the longer they stayed in the house, he never became as big of a threat as the 2005 George did.

7

The priest is different in every Amityville horror

The priest in 1979s The Amityville Horror Had the roughest time of all three

In all three versions of The Amityville HorrorThe archtypical horror movie priest arrives at the house to try to bless it only to be repelled and warded off by whatever supernatural force is haunting the building. However, the extent of the supernatural attack and The identity of the priest is different in all three versions of the story. Father Mancuso appears in the book and hears a voice demanding he get out of the building. His attempt to warn the Lutz over the phone falls short, and he suffers from fever and blisters. Ultimately, Mancuso escapes largely unscathed.

rather, Father Delaney in the 1979 film is plagued with visions of flies before he can bless the house. The hauntings continue, and Delaney isn’t just suffering from fever and blisters. His car eventually goes highway and he even ends up blind. Father Callaway appears in the 2005 film and experiences similar premonitions to Delaney, but is spared the harsher attacks that occurred in the original film. Instead, he reappears later in the film to warn the Lutz family to flee.

6

The marching band is not in the 2005 film

A big musical scare is not in the 2005 remake

One of the more memorable ways George experiences the haunting of the Amityville house in both the original book and the 1979 film involves a mysterious musical noise that lures him down. In the book, George is woken up by the sound of a whole marching band downstairs. When he goes to check it out, he finds that all the furniture has been moved into the living room, as if to make room for a large group of people. rather, The 1979 film features a mysterious drumming Which brings George down instead of a whole gang.

This is one of the best scares in the 1979 film, an unsettling musical turn that initially seems to be part of the soundtrack but steadily proves to be ringing in George’s ears. This type of scare is absent from the 2005 filmwhich instead uses the ghostly apparitions of people like Jodie to haunt George and other characters.

5

The Ceramic Lion is more dangerous in the Amityville Book

The Lion Statue is way creepier in this book

One of the items that appears in the original film and the book that inspired it is a ceramic lion. The sculpture actually appears several times in the literary The Amityville Horror, appears all over the house and moves on its own. When George eventually trips on the lion, he seems to have a clear bite mark on his foot. The book highlights these moments, making the lion one of the clearest about the haunting that is chasing the family.

While there is a ceramic lion in the first cinematic adaptation of The Amityville Horror And George teases it, the lion is much less overt in the film. Even the obvious bite mark on George’s foot was brushed asideWhich is a major contrast from the book where the lion was a more prevalent piece of the haunting. Notably, the 2005 film largely did away with the lion, similar to the mysterious music. This allowed the film to keep the focus more on the family and the effects the ghostly hauntings have on them.

4

Jody’s identity is different from the original story in the 2005 remake

How Jodie was reinvented from a demon to a ghost

In all three versions of The Amityville Horror, A presence identified as Jodi plays a part in the story. In the original story and the 1979 film, Jodie is Missy’s apparent imaginary friend. However, it is steadily implied that Jodie is the demonic presence behind the haunting. Described in both versions as a pig with glowing red eyes, Jody is implicitly the main threat of The Amityville HorrorEven if it does not actively attack the characters in the film. Jodie even follows the Lutz family as they escape the house in the original book.

Jodi was reimagined in 2005 Amityville Horror Remake as one of the DeFeo family who was killed by her older brother Ronald. Jody appears throughout the 2005 film as Chelsea Lutz’s imaginary friend, and often haunts the family. The film presents the idea that Jodie is less dangerous than her demonic counterpart in the book and previous filmImplies that Jody is actually haunting the Lutz family in a bid to make them escape from the house and spare them the cruel fate that befell her and her family.

3

The babysitter is different in the Amityville horror films, and is not in the book at all

There is no teenager who is scared in the original book

Both cinematic adaptations of The Amityville Horror Feature a teenage babysitter Who watches over the children while their parents are out of the house. Functionally, they fill the same role and experience the haunting first-hand. However, their characters are very different. In the 1979 film, Jackie is an innocent young woman played by Amy Wright who wears orthodontic headgear and is terrorized by the demonic Jody. In contrast, the more sexualized Lisa is played by Rachel Nichols and is presented as a flirtatious contrast to Billy.

Notably, Lisa was immediately targeted by Jody and left traumatized by the encounter. The concept of a babysitter was an invention of the films Which was not in the original book. Although there are differences in the hauntings that appear in both the book and the films, this is one of the most obvious unique elements that is not in the book.

2

The Haunted Land gives each Amityville a different origin

The true origins of the Amityville hauntings differ from story to story

All three versions of The Amityville Haunting reveals that the ground on which the house is built is cursed, Give the supernatural events a direct explanation. However, all three end up deviating from one another in that revelation. In the book, the area is a place where local Native American tribes would send them very badly (both physically and mentally). In the 1979 film, the house is revealed to be constructed on a Shinncock burial ground and was previously the home of a notorious Satanic worshipper, John Ketchum.

The 2005 version of The Amityville Horror Amplifies this element by revealing the house is also The Site of Occult Experimentation by Reverend Jeremiah Ketchamwho carried out dark acts on the spot in the 17th century. The 2005 film effectively turns Ketchum into the main source of the dark events surrounding the house, even possessing George at the end of the film and turning him against his family.

1

George’s role in the finale of the Amityville horror is different

George’s 2005 film is much more dangerous

George is one of the main characters in all three versions of The Amityville HorrorAnd his personality is seemingly impacted by the supernatural elements at play in the story. However, all three play different roles in the final stretch of the story. In the original book, George is not possessed like his movie counterparts and instead runs away from the house with the rest of the family. This is a direct contrast to his actions in both movies, where he is briefly taken over by a supernatural force and turned against his loved ones.

In the 1979 movie, George almost attacks the family with an ax but is talked down by Cathy, restoring him and allowing George to help the family escape the house. The George of the 2005 film is much more affected by this possession. On top of being fooled into killing the family dog, he ends up fighting the family so feverishly that he has to be knocked out by Cathy. These changes highlight the different ways the cinematic versions of The Amityville Horror Remix the original story for more visceral scares.