Where I Watched It: Disney plus

English Audio Description?: Yes

I did approach the concept of yet another Hanuted Mansion film with trepidation. A lot of that was alleviated by the fact that Justin Simian would be behind the director’s chair. Not only was I a fan of the film Dear White People, but I also enjoyed the Netflix show inspired by it. I wasn’t sure how his satirical tone would mix with a Disney franchise, but I was mostly pleasantly surprised.

This version of the haunted Mansion seems like it is trying to be a little scarier, with a very much earned PG-13 rating. It also deals with complicated themes throughout, like grief and loss. Even one of the plots biggest points deals with the feeling of missing someone who is no longer in your life. Lakeith Stanfield is here now, instead of Eddie Murphy, and he does a great job with the dramatic stuff, and blending his level of sarcasm. I admit, that the maturity Eddie Murphy has achieved later in life makes me think that this would be the film he was actually waiting for, instead of the 2003 version, but Stanfield doesn’t give a bad performance. Something about how the lineage is just tells me that Murphy could have really turned in something special here as well.

Stanfield is supported by a broad cast, from Tiffany Haddish, who is essentially playing the same character she plays in every movie ever, as well as Owen Wilson, Rosario Dawson, Danny DeVito, Jamie Lee Curtis, and inexplicably Jared Leto. When you realize the role Leto has, and how notoriously method he is as an actor, I feel like there are so many stories that must be told about how he approached this role. I also saw this film and thought the generally picky Leto chose this film? Who blackmailed him? Talk about a film that I would have never guessed he’d appear in, but here he is. And it’s such a massively thankless role.

Our beloved Haunted Mansion is essentially drawing people in, first with Dawson as a mother trying to start fresh with her son, and then slowly one-by-one individuals who should be equipped at removing the spirits from the house. It’s not a film that is serious all the time, but it is one that has some serious moments, as well as some jump scares. This mansion is far more haunted than the last.

Even with all the talk about grief, there’s something about the spark that simian made with his debut that lacks here in haunted Mansion. I feel like he was pressured to make an accessible film, instead of truly being able to put his vision on screen. I have much bigger hopes for him down the line, but he did make a perfectly serviceable version of this film based on a Disney Attraction, and one that improves on the original.

The audio description here is really solid considering all the ghosts, and how sometimes they are seen, and sometimes not. They play around a lot more with the ghosts being able to leave the house. They aren’t always seen, and certainly most don’t talk, so lots of description relies on non-verbal cues being given to help set the spooky mood. The gorier bits also take their time to shine.

Even if it isn’t fully what I expected from the director, it is a very solid film, that was way better than I thought it would be.

Final Grade: B