The Amityville Horror (2005)

A family is terrorized by demonic forces after moving into a home that was the site of a grisly mass-murder.

Director:

Andrew Douglas

Writers:

Scott Kosar (screenplay), Jay Anson (novel),

Stars:

Ryan Reynolds, Melissa George, Jesse James

2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ryan Reynolds	...	George Lutz
Melissa George	...	Kathy Lutz
Jesse James	...	Billy Lutz
Jimmy Bennett	...	Michael Lutz
Chloë Grace Moretz	...	Chelsea Lutz
Rachel Nichols	...	Lisa
Philip Baker Hall	...	Father Callaway
Isabel Conner	...	Jodie Defeo
Brendan Donaldson	...	Ronald Defeo
Annabel Armour	...	Realtor
Rich Komenich	...	Chief of Police
David Gee	...	ER Doctor
Danny McCarthy	...	Officer Greguski
Nancy Lollar	...	Librarian
José Taitano	...	Stitch

Storyline

George and Kathy Lutz and their three children move into a house that was the site of a horrific murder a year before. They decide to keep the house and try to keep the horror in the past. This is until, George starts to behave weirdly and their daughter, Chelsea starts to see people. What now follows is 28 days of sheer terror for the family.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | nightmare | ghost | priest | haunted house | 

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Taglines:

What happened over the next 28 days has never been explained.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, disturbing images, language, brief sexuality and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

MGM [us] Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Terror en Amityville

Filming Locations:

1500 Busch Pky., Buffalo Grove, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$267,446 (Brazil) (19 August 2005)

Gross:

$522,408 (Brazil) (2 September 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Dimension Films, Platinum Dunes

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite the fact that this was filmed in Super 35, "Filmed in Panavision" is listed in the end credits.

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Goofs

The actual address of the house when the Lutz family moved in was 112 Ocean Avenue. When George and Kathleen visit the house for the first time, the address is 412 Ocean Avenue. This is because not only is the movie not meant to be historically accurate in any way, but for legal reasons they were unable to use the house's original address. For the same reasons, the children's names have been changed from the original Lutz family names.

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Quotes

[first lines]
The House: Catch them! Kill them!

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Connections

Referenced in Cinemassacre's Monster Madness: Devil's Rejects (2009)

User Reviews

The House That Dripped Money

"From Michael Bay, the producer of 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre', comes the true story of Amityville. In November 1974, a family of six was brutally murdered. Now, a year later, an unsuspecting young couple, George (Ryan Reynolds) and Kathy Lutz (Melissa George), and their children move into the house that was the site of the horrific event and is now haunted by a murderous presence. What follows is 28 days of unimaginable terror. With demonic visions of the dead and relentless screams of terror, this is the haunted house story that isn't just a movie - it's real," according to the film's official description.

Writer Jay Anson along with "The Amityville Horror" house residents George and Kathleen Lutz essentially made up this story, which was a media sensation even before the first movie appeared in 1979.

"Based on the true story," all of this was supposed to be about a "real" haunted house, with ghosts possibly vengeful due to desecration of sacred Indian burial grounds. Apparently, some religions share the same devil. Gullible people gobbled up the ghoulishness revealed in the original book and movie. It may also be a tribute to the storytellers' imagination that "The Amityville Horror" continues to be taken seriously. This re-make bears mysteriously little resemblance to the original story, however; the flies are sorely underused. Admirers of the male physique will appreciate a generous sampling of Mr. Reynolds' killer body.

*** The Amityville Horror (4/7/05) Andrew Douglas ~ Ryan Reynolds, Melissa George, Jesse James, Jimmy Bennett