A single mom named Gabbie hires a tour guide, a psychic, a priest, and a historian to help exorcise her newly bought mansion after discovering ghosts inhabit it.
“Haunted Mansion” is the latest film from Disney based on one of their theme park rides. There are some nods to the ride some may enjoy, but other than that, I found the story to be very bland. This is not the only film based on a Disney ride. However, unlike “Pirates of the Caribbean,” I don’t see a franchise spinning out of this.
Ben (LaKeith Stanfield) is a grieving scientist who developed a camera that can capture pictures of ghosts. He is invited by Father Kent (Owen Wilson) to help rid a house full of ghosts recently occupied by Gabbie (Rosario Dawson) and her son, Travis (Chase Dillon).
Tiffany Haddish also stars as a medium, Danny DeVito shows up as a quirky professor, and Jamie Lee Curtis cameos. Haddish and DeVito are supposed to be comedic reliefs for the film; however, many of their jokes miss the mark.
The characters are paper-thin. Stanfield does what he can with the material and gives the best performance out of the ensemble. But really, all the interactions between the characters are nothing more than curt and polite. They don’t feel like friends, and we don’t discover anything new about them. The only real character growth is done by Ben, who is more capable of dealing with his grief at the end of the film.
The film is virtually scare-free. Not that I was expecting many scares since this is a family-friendly film, but it still would have been nice to have so that I could experience something other than boredom.
There were also multiple brands name-dropped throughout the film that felt tactless and out of place. The script of the film itself seemed to be very lackluster. It makes me nervous for future films that are going to be centered on rides, toys, or games. If there is not any real story connected to these products, then chances are that a film should not be made about them. I do not want to see something like “Space Mountain: The Movie.”
I found the release date of the film to be questionable. I don’t know why Disney didn’t hold off on premiering this film until closer to Halloween. This film may have performed better on streaming than in theaters. “Haunted Mansion” is not worth your time. The film is forgettable and bland in all aspects. LaKeith Stanfield tries his best, but it is not enough to save the movie.
Now available on Digital, and on 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, and DVD October 17th
