Director Jack Riccobono Talks MGM+ Docuseries Amityville: An Origin Story

Starting this Sunday on MGM+, director Jack Riccobono will take horror-loving followers on a journey into the origins of The Amityville Horror.

The four-episode docuseries research how the movie captured the zeitgeist of the period as curiosity within the paranormal elevated and the way the real-life crime that occurred in the home fed into the lore.

By way of never-before-seen interviews with individuals with first-hand relationships to the murders and the movie, Riccobono affords viewers a surprising inside have a look at how the movie impacted us for generations to come back.

We had an opportunity to speak with Riccobono in regards to the sequence, what impressed him to take the journey, and what shocked him most about what he discovered alongside the best way.

Please benefit from the interview under, which has been edited for readability and content material.

What acquired you interested by documentary filmmaking?

I am making an attempt to know different individuals’s worlds. So I feel I used to be drawn to documentary as a result of it means that you can go to and perceive subcultures and take you to locations that you have not seen or understood earlier than. That is the transportive high quality of documentaries that I really like.

What is the genesis of the present, and what was your thesis for Amityville: An Origin Story?

Nicely, the origins of the story. This mission happened as a result of there had by no means actually been an elevated have a look at the Amityville Horror — all of the layers of it and what gave rise to it.

And I feel that is why the title is Amityville: An Origin Story as a result of we actually attempt to take a look at all of the elements that got here collectively to create the phenomenon of The Amityville Horror, which actually continues to at the present time with over 40 movies that includes the phrase Amityville in them.

I suppose what fascinated me was all of the totally different layers to the story. You have got, after all, the horror story that was featured within the 1979 movie. Lots of people do not understand that that is primarily based on a real story of the Lutz household who moved into this home in Amityville and acquired haunted out 28 days later.

After which, even earlier than the Lutzes, you then have the DeFeo household who, a yr earlier than the Lutz moved into the home, suffered this horrible tragedy the place six out of seven members of the family had been discovered shot to dying of their beds below mysterious circumstances.

So for me, there’s this layering the place you will have the horror style of the ’70s; horror movies, that are an unbelievable house that I really like; paranormal investigation, which was exploding within the Seventies, tremendous well-liked, making an attempt to know phenomena which can be unexplainable; after which you will have this heinous true crime that occurred in 1974, which was an enormous occasion in and of itself.

I imply, in 1974, mass homicide was not regular. And sadly, at the moment, we face quite a lot of mass shootings. However in 1974, this was front-page information lined by Walter Cronkite; this household discovered shot to dying of their prosperous suburban residence.

So I actually wished to take a look at how these two occasions of the murders of the DeFeo household and the hauntings of the Lutzes got here collectively on this very specific second within the ’70s to create what we consider because the Amityville Horror.

What do you assume is the extra attention-grabbing a part of the story, the murders or what occurred to the Lutzes?

I actually assume it is the alchemy of the occasions, and the way the tales intertwine with one another as a result of they actually overlap in bizarre and stunning methods. And I feel that what ties them collectively is basically the cultural second.

You have got these darkish undercurrents within the Seventies with Nixon resigning, the Vietnam Warfare, individuals distrusting establishments, and this backlash to the free love, freewheeling late ’60s. So the early ’70s had been a darkish and bizarre time in America, and I feel that that is a part of why these two occasions had been capable of mix on this loopy vogue.

One of many massive issues is you will have The Exorcist popping out in 1973, which was this large phenomenon that popularized the concept of demonic possession and the concept individuals would exit and get exorcisms. And it additionally was an instance of a real story that blew up into this huge Hollywood blockbuster.

So in quite a lot of methods, that laid the groundwork and was just like the template for what would occur with The Amityville Horror, though I do not assume the Lutzes may have ever imagined how a lot consideration would come from their story and that it could nonetheless be getting instructed in increasingly more loopy and ridiculous methods to at the present time.

I actually loved the credit score sequence the place you had all of the unusual film posters. Oh my gosh, I had no concept that it had gotten to that time the place something is Amityville.

Sure. That is a few various factors. I feel that this story redefined the haunted home for a era of individuals within the ’70s, and it actually captured their creativeness. Amityville can also be a city title, so it may well’t actually be copyrighted, so actually anybody may make a film and put the phrase Amityville in it.

So that’s a part of why the franchise has so many tentacles and has gone in so many alternative wild and loopy instructions. And clearly, the web and social media have spun it out in much more loopy and wild instructions, and I do not assume it is ever going to cease.

I at all times discovered it attention-grabbing, too, that there was the Amityville Horror, after which Amity was town in Jaws.

Sure.

It appears to me like these two issues had been conflated at a time if you would not have anticipated it, simply attributable to that easy little phrase, Amity.

Completely. Amityville is “the pleasant village,” so it has a poor underpinning to it. It is just like the pleasant village, aside from the darkness that lurks beneath.

Out of your perspective, what units Amityville: An Origin Story aside from all the pieces else that has come earlier than it?

I feel one of many issues we’re most pleased with is that we had been capable of get individuals to take part and sit down for the primary time, individuals who had skilled these occasions firsthand and share their tales instantly. And firstly, Christopher Quaratino, previously generally known as Christopher Lutz, is the center son of the Lutz household.

He was seven years outdated when the Lutzes acquired haunted out of the home. And he sat down for his first in-depth interview to essentially clarify intimately what he remembers from being seven years outdated and dwelling by way of that interval.

After which past that, the influence of those occasions on his household throughout the remainder of his childhood as a result of it was vital to us to take a look at the story from quite a lot of totally different angles, together with the human toll that the story took as a result of, clearly, it has been spun out in all these loopy, wild instructions and it is gotten additional and additional away from the factual underpinnings of each the DeFeo murders and in addition the Lutz’s story of what actually occurred.

So Christopher shares what he thinks occurred to him, but in addition who he thinks is chargeable for the hauntings that the Lutzes skilled in the home. In order that’s, after all, an thrilling component of the present. After which we even have shut family and friends which have by no means been interviewed earlier than.

So Carol Soviero, an in depth buddy of George Lutz who toured the home with the Lutzes earlier than they moved in after which was with them within the speedy aftermath and moved out to California with them, shares her tales of that point interval for the very first time.

After which, on the DeFeo aspect, we have now a really shut buddy of Ronnie DeFeo Jr, who was convicted of the murders for killing his complete household. We communicate with Tommy Maher, who was, once more, an in depth childhood buddy of Ronnie’s, and he speaks in regards to the occasions main as much as the murders and what he thinks transpired. In order that’s one facet.

We even have footage and pictures that haven’t been launched earlier than and paperwork that we imagine make clear the origins of the story.

Was there anyone or something that you simply wished you had entry to that you simply did not?

Ah, that is a troublesome one. I imply, there are at all times parts that you would be able to’t fairly observe down. One of many issues that basically fascinated me in regards to the story was the mafia connections that the DeFeo household had. And whereas we had been capable of set up these hyperlinks, lots of people won’t communicate on the report about these hyperlinks even at the moment.

In order that component is within the sequence of mafia connections that the DeFeos had. There’s extra to that story, however individuals aren’t prepared to speak but.

Oh, it is the mafia. You could be somewhat reluctant to out something that goes on with them.

Precisely.

What was probably the most stunning factor that you simply found alongside the best way?

Essentially the most stunning factor. I suppose it actually, in some methods, goes again to how widespread the fascination was with demonic possession within the mid-’70s, which I feel ties proper again to The Exorcist.

However individuals had been actually obsessive about this concept of possession and of exorcism, and that was an attention-grabbing factor to find all these years later, that it grew to become such a widespread thought and that folks would entertain that.

After which use it as leisure.

Sure. Precisely, precisely.

About issues which can be stunning, I like that you simply contact upon George Lutz and the way he was talking with some unsavory people and involved in demonic possession himself.

Sure.

How did you uncover that after which comply with up on that line of considering?

Nicely, with out giving an excessive amount of away, I do not wish to have any spoilers, however we had been clearly very centered on all the pieces that the Lutzes stated in press interviews of the time.

So we did a really deep dive into all the factual data after which, after all, tried to work backward to see, “Nicely, what may we confirm, or who may we ask to get one other perspective on this?”

So with George Lutz, one of many issues that has at all times been a thriller about him may be very little has been recognized about his childhood or about his life previous to when he met Kathy. George shouldn’t be the daddy of Christopher or of Kathy’s older kids.

Principally, Kathy and George met, they acquired married, and inside about six months, they moved into the Amityville home. So that each one occurred fairly shortly, and one of many issues that was mysterious about this story is George’s previous.

So we had been capable of join with an in depth buddy of George’s named Joe Vetter, who described some bike journeys that they took. And it was by way of him that we had been capable of set up that George did have some publicity to the occult within the yr previous to transferring into the Amityville Home.

And I do not wish to say way more than that, however you get this sense that as a result of George, in interviews, explicitly denied ever figuring out or having an curiosity within the occult. And it seems that he did truly meet and go to the house of a really well-known cult determine named Raymond Buckland, who popularized Wicca within the Seventies.

In order that was fairly an attention-grabbing discovery and means that maybe George knew extra in regards to the occult than he initially shared in press interviews within the ’70s.

I additionally actually just like the quotes originally of every episode and the way they set out what the episode goes to speak about. Do you will have these issues in thoughts beforehand? Have you learnt these quotes and assume, “I would like to include these indirectly and use these as a information,” or do you seek for quotes after the very fact?

We had been making an attempt to determine the present within the early days of the enhancing course of and experimenting, and our supervising editor added that Jean-Paul Sartre quote, “Hell is different individuals,” to an early lower, and it simply supplied a framework.

And once more, it supplied a possibility for us to remark out of the gate and arrange the viewers in a sure means and put them in a sure state of mind for learn how to strategy the story as a result of this isn’t your typical documentary sequence.

I feel it is a fairly wild experience that we take you on, the place every episode has a really totally different taste to it. The primary episode is basically like a horror docutainment with bounce scares, the place you are taken into the thoughts of the Lutzes and expertise what they are saying occurred to them.

In episode two, it is way more of this hard-boiled true crime investigation of the DeFeo murders and actually tries to take a look at how these unexplained parts of that crime led to paranormal explanations.

After which, within the third episode, you will have this loopy mixture of the tales of the DeFeo murders and the Lutz hauntings and the way that gave rise to the bestselling guide after which, in the end, the 1979 movie.

After which the fourth episode has this investigative documentary high quality, the place we uncover new facets of George Lutz’s previous which have by no means been revealed earlier than.

So we wished every episode to have its personal sort of really feel, and the quotes actually ended up supporting that. And funnily sufficient, they landed and simply caught by way of the method. We did not audition 100 totally different quotes or one thing. In some way, the early quotes ended up, I feel, informing the place we took the episode.

And it is simply a type of unusual qualities, I suppose, that unexplainable alchemy of the publish course of, that we had been capable of land on these quotes.

And in the end, I feel there are other ways to learn them, however actually, one solution to learn them is thru the lens of George Lutz, who actually is massive as a central determine on this complete story. And I feel you may apply all of them to serious about him in a method or one other.

And eventually, what do you hope individuals take away from this after watching?

Nicely, I hope that they will really feel connections to our present second in it. I feel horror is an unbelievable style for exploring actual anxieties and fears that we face on daily basis.

And I feel that this present unravels one of the well-known horror movie horror tales of all time and means that you can see it by way of many alternative angles, together with the elements within the ’70s that led to its existence.

And so I hope that in watching the present, individuals can mirror on the second we’re dwelling in now, and possibly that may give them a brand new perspective on how we’re going through a number of the fears and anxieties of our day.

Amityville: An Origin Story premieres on Sunday, April 23, on MGM+ at 10/9c.