The Haunted Mansion (Widescreen Edition)

Scary? Well, not really. They are a big fan of having things jump out and try to get you jumping yourself... but all these parts were rather predictable. But, my son enjoyed the thrill factor of this movie. I've always shied from him watching scary movies, but I felt okay about bringing him to this one.

Funny? Well, Eddie Murphy is always funny. He is just a funny guy and a fun guy to watch on the screen. He did seem to be coasting through most of this movie, but he becomes to this movie what Johnny Depp was to POTC.

Story line? Pretty simple, but this is more a movie for kids so simple was in what was called or. My son really enjoyed it. But how they beat the bad guy... just not too dramatic or outstanding of an ending to this movie.

Special Effects? Fantastic!! Flawless! The ghosts were well done as well as the magic crystal ball.

Recommended? For the very little ones that are weak of heart... I wouldn't recommend. For the older young ones who can stomach a ghost story, oh yes!!! For adults... maybe consider it for a rental unless you are taking your kids.


Just Okay   January 5, 2004
Woofboy (Longwood, FL United States)
10 out of 14 found this review helpful

Disney has been making movies about their rides at their theme parks for a while now. Their first one, the Country Bears, was awful and was a complete waste of time and money. After the Country Bears, I wasn't expecting much from their second movie based on a ride, but Pirates of the Carribean was amazing. Then this movie... The Haunted Mansion came next. After Pirates of the Caribbean, I was really expecting a lot, but my hopes weren't completely filled.

The Haunted Mansion starred Eddie Murphy, which was the downfall of the whole movie. Without him, the movie would have been much better. All of his stupid jokes made the movie lose so much.

The story of the movie is slightly different from the backstory of the ride. On the ride, Master Gracey is the narrator. He was a crazy guy who for no apparent reason besides from being a ghost, hung himself. So after that he started haunting his mansion, allowing 1000 happy haunts to share the mansion with him. Everyone else in the mansion eventually died. The maids and butlers hang around and haunt the house, letting living guests in. Master Graceys bride (in the attic scene in the ride) commited suicide since she couldn't cope with her husband to be's death, and her broken heart could be heard throughout the attic. Then there was Madam Leota, who trapped herself in a crystal ball so she would live forever and was able to possess dolls to see outside her ball. 999 silly spooks haunted the house and let guests come through every day trying to find that 1 person to fill up the last spot as a happy haunt.

The movie was based on the ride but was a bit different. It centered on the Evers family who ran a real estate business. They got a call to represent a huge mansion, and Jim Evers (eddie murphy) couldn't resist. Before going on a family vacation, they stopped at the mansion, and the creepy butler told them that they were wanted to stay for dinner. During dinner with Master Gracey, the road flooded and the family was trapped in the house. They agreed to spend the night, and were shown their rooms. Then Eddie Murphy gets called to speak to Master Gracey, and while he is waiting, he finds a secret passage way and gets stuck in it. He eventually finds his way to Madam Leota, where he finds out about the curse on the house. Then Murphy's wife gets a tour of the house from Mr. Gracey himself, and eventually it is found out that the butler was evil, and he ment to kill Murphys wife so she could marry Mr. Gracey because he believed that she was his reincarnated bride to be that was poisoned and died. Leaving out some of the details in case you want to see the movie yourself, eventually the ghosts all get to go to heaven.

The special effects in the movie were amazing, as well as all of the makeup and stuff. Everything in that section was flawless.

But the movie did have some inconsistencys that made it lose some stuff. I didn't like the changes that they made to the story line. They should have kept the story more along the lines of the ride. Also, in movie time, it took eddie murphy a good 3 hours to figure out the house was haunted, even though he was surround by ghosts, who even admited they were ghosts. Another thing. Many times torches would be taken out of a spot, but in the next shot the character who took them out would still be holding the torch, but another one replaced it. And finally, at the end of the movie, the Evers got to keep the house, and they took Madam Leota with them, which is understandable since she lives forever, but they also took the singing heads which should have no longer been haunted since all of the ghosts went to heaven at the end of the movie.

Overall, it was an ok movie. Nothing great, but fun to a Haunted Mansion fan.


999 Happy Haunts? Not really.   November 28, 2003
9 out of 10 found this review helpful

I'm a huge fan of Disneyland, and the Haunted Mansion is one of my favorite attractions, so I force myself not to get my hopes up too high when they say they are going to make a movie out of one of them, lest I be too disappointed by the result. And it's a good thing. I was pleasantly surprised when they came out with the very entertaining "Pirates of the Caribbean" this summer, but "the Haunted Mansion" doesn't quite deliver on its promise so successfully, as hard as it tries.

And it does try hard. From the typically sumptuous sets that a Disney movie can afford, to the great comedic talent of Eddie Murphy, this movie could have had the right mix of atmosphere and comedy to be both a satisfying homage to a beloved themepark ride, as well as a fun piece of entertainment. But this House falls down in the storytelling area, from where it can't quite get back up.

The story did have potential, it really did. It included enough "explanations" of various parts of the ride, that it could satisfy any annual passport holder to Disneyland, like the Hitchhiking Ghosts, the guy hanging from the ceiling, or the wedding dress in the attic. But the moths in that dusty attic must have been running amuck, because there are too many holes in the fabric of the story. Whenever there was a chance for a character to explain or develop part of the story, they seemed instead to take the time to harp about a vague evil curse in the house, the origin of which we can only speculate about. Okay, the house is cursed, but why? Okay, one servant is evil, but why? Okay, there are lots of spirits hanging around in the backyard cemetary, but is it too much to ask, why? It's left up to you to guess, but then, they don't give you a satisfying answer.

This movie is probably worth viewing just to pick out the references to the ride, and to see a funny Eddie Murphy picking his way through them. It's not too bad for kids, except for one scene that belongs in the Thriller video, that could be frightening to the young ones. Just be sure to "look alive", and beware of the plot holes, which, like Hitchhiking Ghosts, will haunt you all the way home.