There are plenty of shady characters that look like the ghosts in the iconic Haunted Mansion ride, but they could have been used better and been more entertaining in a cohesive story. It’s too scary for kids and not camp enough for teens and adults. The bland script is a confusing mashup that is not as fun as Disney’s classic ride. And why not wait to show at Halloween?
This film is overstuffed with talented celebrities who are not used well enough at all. Director Justin Simien (Dear White People) and Writer Katie Dippold (Ghostbusters, The Heat, Snatched) certainly had enough talent to work with. They could have given Lakeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Tiffany Haddish, Danny DeVito, Owen Wilson, plus Jamie Lee Curtis and Jared Leto great punch lines and some good jump scares. Not enough of either. As in every other Disney heart tugging epic, this story doubles down on the dead relative trope and we get to meet lots of them throughout.
Stanfield, as Ben, is the main character in a film very unlike his previous projects (The Black Messiah, Knives Out, Selma). He really puts a lot of effort into make this script work, despite his character’s inconsistencies. The film begins with Ben’s love story which abruptly shifts years later to a mom, Gabbie, (Dawson) and her son, Travis (Chase W. Dillon) taking over a dilapidated old mansion in New Orleans. That’s where Gabbie and Chase encounter the trademark ghosts of the ride who follow them inside and out making sure they stay inside. Dawson is almost too calm and doesn’t seem to be as emotionally invested in her character as cute Chase, who shows panic well when he sees these scary spirits.
Ben, who was previously an astrophysicist, has good reason to be depressed. When priest, Kent (Wilson) encourages him to help the new tenants of the mansion, he balks. Kent keeps telling Ben he’ll make plenty of money if he helps spot their ghosts and figure out how to get rid of them. He convinces Ben by asking “Do you want to be a hero?” Ben’s in.
They also procure Fortune Teller Harriet (Tiffany Haddish) who is always Tiffany-style exuberant, but she’s not given a whole lot of comedy for her character. DeVito is the funniest of the bunch, playing Bruce Davis, a professor of Hauntology, He gets to really ham it up, but his continual interruptions hamper any kind of continuity, which gets tiresome.
It’s always fun to see Jamie Lee Curtis ,especially when she pops up under glass. Her being in a crystal ball could have led to so many jokes with great punch lines. Unfortunately, her elaborate Cleopatra-esque headpiece is never explained, and didn’t make her character any more exciting. She is seems wasted in this film, in more ways than one. So is Jared Leto who plays Crump, the most evil ghost presence of all. His characterization is either the product of poor motion capture or really mediocre animation.
This little band of ghost hunters tries to banish the baddest resident ghost in order to break the curse of the mansion. The special effects are nothing to write home about. Since the first Haunted Mansion, CGI has advanced light years. Disney is certainly capable of doing more sophisticated imaging.
There are plenty of chases running around the big, dark haunted house, changing perspective with hallways elongated like the walls in the popular Disney Parks attraction, with portraits on the wall coming to life, guttural voices, plus the attic and the basement of this big dark house are always scary. True to form, there are the dancing ghosts reminiscent of those in the Disney ride with its haunting theme song playing in the background. That was very familiar to us since last year we heard it over and over again on a loop when we got stuck on the ride at Disneyland with little ones. It almost felt like we were stuck again.
This film moves in fits and starts and is confusing as well as frustrating with just a few fun moments. With so much talent at its disposal, we think Director Simien and writer Dippold, could have filled the film with more imaginative comedy and wit instead of all the nostalgia from the Parks’ ride. This film is another Disney stumble. Haunted Mansion is ghostly, but also, alas, ghastly.
Walt Disney Pictures. 2 hours 2 minutes PG-13
