Haunted Mansion reboot review: theme-park indulgence done right

In 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean – The Curse of the Black Pearl All odds were against us. Gore Verbinski’s fantasy epic seemed doomed, since pirate movies had faded out of popularity decades prior and a theme park-inspired blockbuster was still a weird, novel concept. It was a huge success when released in theaters. The film grossed more than $650m worldwide, and launched the five-film franchise.

Here’s the thing, though: Apart from the Disney fans who followed the saga of the film’s production, not many people even realized it was a theme park movie. Verbinski chose wisely to build the film around the ride. Some diehards will be able point out smaller details, such as the dog that holds a small keyring. But Pirates of the Caribbean Adaptation in name only This worked in 2003.

By contrast, Haunted MansionThe movie of the same name, which was released the following year, contains characters and references from the Disney rides. The film earned some cult love, but it was critically panned, and while it made blockbuster money, it couldn’t compare to Pirates of the Caribbean’s box-office booty.

Image: Disney

In 2023, making a movie about a theme park is vastly different from what it was in 1993. Theme parks will be more expensive in 2023 but they’ll also be more accessible through social media. People who can’t afford Disney park vacations can still watch ride-throughs on YouTube, and fan sites keep readers up to date on every minute change and plan for the parks and their attractions.

So instead of shying away from references and in-jokes, Justin Simien’s 2023 version of Haunted MansionThe 2003 film is even more intense. The new film, starring LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson, and Danny DeVito, is full to the brim with theme park nods — from the wallpaper pattern in the haunted mansion to the main ghostly characters, from the soundtrack to the portraits hanging on the walls. It’s basically a checklist of the most beloved items from the Disney park attraction. But here’s the thing: It kinda works?

[Ed. note: This review contains some setup spoilers for Haunted Mansion, and also ride spoilers.]

Image: Disney

The Haunted mansion is different from other theme parks attractions such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Jungle Cruise because the ride has already been turned into a movie. There is a story or lore that goes along with it. Every Disney theme park has its own Haunted House, with different details. Simien (along with writer Katie Dippold) worked together to create this film.Grabbed, The 2016 Ghostbusters( have cleaned some dusty portraits and busts to make them come to life. I couldn’t count every single ghost that appeared, but I definitely recognized some staples from the ride.

You don’t need any deep ride-lore appreciation to watch the movie, which is a pretty fun comedy-horror bolstered by a stellar cast. But it sure does help, especially when it comes to some of the film’s more puzzling details. A brief pan to a portrait of a lady reclining and then turning into a catlike woman in a beam of moonlight, for instance, might seem like a random furry cameo if you don’t know that it’s one of the portraits you ride past in the opening moments of the attraction.

Those brief nods are nice little details, but when the movie starts to integrate specific ride mechanics, I wasn’t quite sold. Even though it’s a big win for the theme park fans, I found the integration of the stretch-room mechanism into the film a little too far-fetched. I don’t like the big climatic moments of my movie experiences to be tied to specific bits of knowledge — even when I’m the one in on it this time around. It was a great set-piece but I felt the film was pandering to me too much.

It is impressive to see the new 2023Haunted Mansion Leans so heavily on the ride and still manages to make a great, entertaining movie. The story itself needs some reworking, especially a field trip that characters make late in film which moves the action from the mansion. The actors give their best to these roles.

Photo: Jalen Marlowe/Disney

Stanfield, the only straight man in this cast of kooky characters, is a great bounce-off point for all. But as an astrophysicist who has become a reluctant paranormal tour guide and investigator, Stanfield brings his grounded sense of humor. DeVito is a chaotic character, portraying a crazy history professor, while Haddish plays a fiery medium. Rounding out the investigator quartet is Wilson as Father Kent, a priest who keeps offering pep talks and positive spiels, even if the actual prayers and blessings he says seem to be a bit… off.

If this were a different movie, each of these actors would only be the comedic relief. When they’re all together, the characters react with an exuberant energy to the ghostly happenings at the mansion. It is a PG-13 Disney movie, so it can be spooky.

In 2003, Verbinski distanced Pirates of the CaribbeanFrom being a movie for theme parks. Simien, his crew and the rest of 2023 will be able to enjoy this fact. Haunted MansionOne. Simien could’ve simply just leaned on the theme park of it all, like 2021’s Jungle Cruise, but he committed to getting all the little details on screen — and he committed hard. It’s full-throttle indulgence, and a full 180 from the Pirates of the CaribbeanTheme park movies are a challenge. The niche jokes might not be appreciated by everyone, but both require work. For the specific subset that it appeals to, Haunted Mansion This is an eerie, smirking delight.

Haunted Mansion The film will be released on the 28th of July.