Tag Archives: Ronald DeFeo Jr

The People vs Ronald DeFeo

I’ve been pretty vocal about my opinion that the Amityville franchise has been bled dry at this point. But I have long thought that a more factual film about the DeFeo murders would be a nice change from the typical haunted house mess everyone seems to want to focus on. Amityville II: The Possession tried to tell this story, but took it a bit too far into fiction.

While deep in a YouTube hole this week I ran across this little short film by Out of Time Pictures called Amityville: The People vs Ronald DeFeo Jr. It appears to be a proof of concept to secure funding for a feature and it is damn impressive.

I guessing this will be based on the book High Hopes by prosecutor Gerald Sullivan since he appears to be the main character. I hope they get the money to make this film. It looks very promising.

I do have to wonder about one of the jurors though. The man on the far left seems a bit too “amused” by Ronnie’s courtroom confession. I’d keep an eye on him.

You can follow the progress over at https://www.outoftimepictures.com/in-development/

On the Nightstand: The Amityville Murders

amityvillemurders

Despite all the alleged ghosts that roam the halls of 112 Ocean Avenue for a lot of people the real horror in Amityville occurred a year before the Lutzs moved in when the DeFeo family was executed in their sleep on November 13, 1974 by the eldest son Ronald. The haunting the Lutzs described on the talk show circuit made for interesting television but the story of the crime that set all of these events in motion is far more fascinating. If Ronnie hadn’t done what he did we wouldn’t even be talking about the town of Amityville at all, aside from the occasional mention in travel brochures.

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