"The Conjuring": How true is the haunted house movie?

(CBS News) "The Conjuring" is being called the scariest movie of the summer, and last weekend the haunted-house chiller drew more than $41 million at the box office, which was twice its budget, in just three days.

"The Conjuring" scares up hauntingly good reviews

The movie is about the alleged haunting of an 18th century Rhode Island farm house and is supposedly based on a true story, but some have their doubts.

However, Andrea Perron grew up in the farmhouse depicted in the film and she says that the movie is "essentially true." She lived there from 1971 until 1980 and told "CBS This Morning: Saturday" co-hosts Vinita Nair and Anthony Mason that her familiy's horrifying experiences began even as they were just moving into the home.

"I walked in with a box from the truck, and I greeted a gentleman that was standing in the dining room, and he ignored me as if I was a ghost," she said. "Both sisters saw him too, the two that followed me in, and the third walked into the kitchen and said, 'That man in the dining room just disappeared.' That was our first encounter."

Perron said that some things in the movie were changed in order to show the story, but it wasn't necessarily exaggerated. The movie makes it seem like everything happened in a short amount of time, but in reality these events occurred over their 10-year stay in the farmhouse. She also said there were things that the film did not touch because they were too scary.

She explained that eventually her family brought in Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were known as demonologists or paranormal investigators, and they seemed to make things worse.

"It really stirred things up in the house and unfortunately they opened a door they were not able to close," Perron said.

Even with all the terrifying experiences in that home, Perron continues to go back.

"It's the only place on Earth that feels like home to me," she said.

"The Conjuring" rakes in $41.5M to top box office

Perron wrote a book about her experiences called "House of Darkness, House of Light."

For Andrea Perron's full interview, watch the video in the player above.