Directed by Justin Simien and based on the theme park ride of the same name, Haunted Mansion follows Gabbie (Rosario Dawson) and her son Travis (Chase W. Dillon) who move into a mansion, only to find that it is haunted. To combat the spirits, they enlist the aid of a team to help exorcise their mansion and destroy the ghosts around them.
Disney is back again with another adaptation of one of their famous theme park rides but the difference here is that this is the second attempted adaptation of the Haunted Mansion ride. The first adaptation, known as The Haunted Mansion, came out back in 2003 and it was considered to be an absolute disaster that was slaughtered by both audiences and critics for countless reasons and buried deep as a result.
But now, 20 years later, the Haunted Mansion rises back from the grave, helmed by a new director with a very interesting ensemble cast in hopes of delivering a better adaptation that captures the ghoulish charm of the source material. Is this new revival any better than what came before? Well, I’m actually shocked to say that it is better than what came before. Haunted Mansion is a goofy but mostly fun time of a film. It has issues that prevent it from being more than a decently fun flick but it is still fun nonetheless and does have some surprising elements that I did not expect to be attached to. This easily could have been some cheaply made bullshit like the first adaptation, but there was some actual effort put into this one that makes it worth watching.
To start things off we have an immensely dedicated cast who are well aware of the kind of film they are in and they embrace it by playing their respective roles in ways that deliver charm, laughs, and in some cases emotional moments that are actually effective. It’s an oddball cast that clearly had tons of fun with this ghostly adventure but there are some standouts among this cast.
When it comes to delivering humor Owen Wilson and Danny DeVito deliver as expected but I was definitely not expecting the funniest performance to be from Tiffany Haddish as Harriet. I know some people have varying opinions of Haddish in terms of her comedic roles but I will say this is probably one of the better ones she’s had in recent years. She brings a great amount of hilarious energy that matches the goofy tone of the film and as a result, she ends up delivering the most amount of laughs of the film, which I did not expect. What I also didn’t expect was for her to deliver one of the most heartfelt moments of the film that on paper you’d think would come off as so silly, but it actually works.
But by far the biggest surprise performance of the film is LaKeith Stanfield as the leading character, Ben. I think many people are fully aware of LaKeith Stanfield’s talent as an actor at this point but I don’t think anyone is going to expect the amount of heart and soul this man puts into this role. He gets to show a wide range of emotions as this very interesting character who is dealing with a massive amount of grief as a result of an incident in his past. We get to see many different sides of this character as the film progresses where he seemingly starts off as this anti-social jerk, to then seeing the layers of his shell get peeled back, revealing a very broken, vulnerable man underneath. LaKeith plays this character beautifully and explores the surprising theme of grief within the film through his character. While he certainly delivers some great laughs like others do with comedic scenes he managed to steal the spotlight with the emotional scenes. In a film that is based on a theme park ride, you wouldn’t think anyone would go so hard with a performance but man did LaKeith go for it in this and I honestly consider this to be one of the best performances of the year.
As for the ghosts of the mansion, they were all really good performance-wise and looks-wise, with a number of them being based on the ghost characters from the ride. Even though most of them have CGI layers on them you do see it mixed in with some pretty great practical effects, costumes, and makeup that give the film a visual identity that matches the original ride, especially with how disfigured some of them can be in a campy fashion.
But there is one truly terrifying ghost of the lot that ends up being the most terrifying and has a spine-chilling presence throughout the film and that is the Hat-Box Ghost, who oddly enough is voiced by Jared Leto. The Hat-Box Ghost has always been the most infamous and scariest ghost of the original Haunted Mansion ride and that gets translated to live action so perfectly in this film that he had me on edge the entire time he was on screen. His look, his presence, his voice, literally everything about this guy was creepy as hell every time he came on screen. He is easily the scariest and most unsettling part of the film that as a whole is not meant to be very scary and is instead meant to be ghoulishly fun like the ride is. If anything, this is an accurate depiction of how the Hat-Box Ghost was truly the creepiest ghost of the ride.
The film’s plot is pretty straightforward in terms of being largely focused on a haunted house full of ghosts that are haunting within its walls and the rag-tag team is trying to rid of them. That being said there are a few spins the film adds that make it feel fun and captures the ghoulish charm of the original ride, complete with iconic thrills and moments that are adapted from the ride. And there is also a very well-executed theme of grief that is included in the film that was very unexpected but very welcome.
One of the problems I had though with the film in terms of narrative is that it takes some time to get to all the really fun goofy stuff, as the first act feels a bit like a chore to get through in some places as well as feeling a bit unfocused with how it starts. But once the haunting begins and all the characters get together in the mansion, kicking off the madness, that is when things got a lot better for me.
Another issue is that while I mostly liked the humor in this film I wasn’t a big fan of the absurd amounts of product placement this film tries to shoehorn in at every opportunity. I don’t mind the occasional product placement here and there, especially if the product placement is used in a unique way that benefits the story, but in this film it was a frequent annoyance that came up way too frequently in the dialogue for some characters when it really didn’t need to. It does thankfully end up disappearing later on in the film, but as someone who hates absurd product placement in films, I can’t help but point out how much it stuck out to me like a sore thumb in the frequent moments it came up.
When it comes to effects this film has its share of both practical and CGI on display. The practical effects and sets like the Mansion itself all look amazing and nailed down the visual aesthetic of the ride while also having a few creative spins. The atmosphere feels creepy all around, just the way I like it, thanks to the practical work. As for the CGI well let’s just say that a lot of it looks campy as hell and will likely not win everyone over. Some digital effects are really good for some sequences, like the movement of the paintings, the use of mirrors, the looks of some ghosts, and other small details. But then some larger effects do look heavily campy in many areas that some may find matches with mostly goofy ghoulish tone of the film and the ride, while for others it may look dumb. Personally, I don’t mind some of the campy effects that much but I totally understand that not everyone will like it or find it visually appealing. But if I’m going to be honest, the campy effects of this film are honestly superior compared to the god-awful aged effects of the 2003 adaptation.
The cinematography is fantastic for this film, adding to the haunting atmosphere and fun, as well as showcasing excellent use of shadows, candle-lit areas, and thematic colors of blue, green, and purple to again capture the aesthetic of the original ride perfectly and give this film more of an identity than the first adaptation. And the music by Kris Bowers is absolutely brilliant with a score fitting for this film that even includes multiple variants of the Haunted Mansion theme song, which was a lovely nostalgic touch I won’t lie.
Overall, I had a mostly good time with Haunted Mansion and I can certainly say that this is a much better adaptation than the first despite the faults this one has. It’s a harmless film that offers fun and surprises that make it worth watching for anyone, including fans of the original ride. Not everyone may like it but I think there’s no harm in giving this one a go. I’m going to give Haunted Mansion a B- = 83
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