The Real Amityville Horror

At 3:15 AM on November 13, 1974, Ronald DeFeo Jr. murdered his entire family at their home on 412 Ocean Avenue. He later claimed that voices in the house persuaded him to kill. The brutal event cursed the property with a legacy of malevolent rumor and fear.

George and Kathy Lutz relocate to the same house with Kathy's three children, seeking a fresh start. Almost immediately, they begin to experience unsettling paranormal activity that unsettles the family. The house at 412 Ocean Avenue becomes a stage for inexplicable phenomena.

Chelsea claims to have befriended a girl named Jodie, a name linked to one of the murdered DeFeo children. The claim hints at a personal connection to the haunting. The presence of Jodie foreshadows increasingly troubling events inside the house.

Babysitter Lisa arrives for the evening, and Kathy explains the house’s dark history. Chelsea warns Lisa that Jodie has criticized her, hinting at danger if Lisa misreads the situation. Lisa is dared to enter Chelsea’s closet, is locked inside, and encounters Jodie, collapsing in shock before medics arrive.

George’s abusive behavior intensifies, and he appears to be under a malign influence. He follows an unholy barking from the boathouse and, wielding an axe, murders the family dog, mistaking it for a demonic presence. The act deepens the family’s fear and sense of danger.

Kathy asks Father Callaway to bless the house in an attempt to ward off the hauntings. The blessing proves futile as the phenomena grow stronger, and the priest flees the residence when confronted by the supernatural. The attempt underscores the house’s overwhelming malevolence.

Kathy learns that the house once belonged to Reverend Jeremiah Ketcham, a cult preacher whose brutal actions against Native Americans are said to fuel the haunting. The revelation ties the hauntings to a centuries-old history of violence. The discovery intensifies the sense that violence lingers in the home.

While wandering the basement, George encounters the apparitions of Native Americans who were tortured there. He also meets Ketcham himself, who slits George’s throat, spraying blood and seemingly transferring the evil to him. The encounter marks George as a focal point of possession and deepens the haunting’s menace.

Following urgent advice from Father Callaway, Kathy attempts to evacuate her children from the house and move them to safety. The family struggles to leave as the manifestations grow more aggressive around them. The plan signals a turning point toward escape.

The possessed George again attacks in an attempt to kill Kathy and the children. Kathy knocks him unconscious and ferries the family away from the residence by boat. The escape marks their decision to abandon the house for good.

A title card states that the family left within 28 days of arriving and never returned. The abrupt departure ends their stay in the infamous home. The house is left vacant, rumored to be haunted by its dark history.

In the now-empty house, Jodie stands in terror as the rooms seem to rearrange themselves back to their original configuration. Then a pair of disembodied hands pulls Jodie beneath the floor, sealing the house’s grim past. The haunting lingers even after the family’s departure.