Haunted Mansion

Haunted Mansion story: A single mother Gabbie (Rosario Dawson) hires a tour guide with a special camera to rid her newly purchased haunted mansion of ghosts. But a series of eerie events unfold, awakening many spirits from the mansion's dreaded past

Haunted Mansion review: It’s love at first sight when Ben Mathias (LaKeith Stanfield) - an astrophysicist meets a local tour guide Alyssa (Charity Jordan) in a New Orleans town where death is not an end but a new beginning. It’s a place where people celebrate spooky encounters and haunted mansions are the most sought after tourist attractions. After a life-changing incident alters Ben's path, he meets Gabbie, a single mother to a nerdy 10-year old Travis (Chase Dillon). The mother-son duo are trapped in a haunted mansion infested with all kinds of ghosts. Reluctantly though, Ben joins a motley crew of quirky characters. Together, they find themselves trapped in a huge mansion teeming with ghosts. These include a priest called Father Kent (Owen Wilson), a psychic named Harriet (Tiffany Haddish) and a veteran historian Bruce (Danny DeVito). The real adventure begins from here.

Based on a Disneyland theme park ride by the same name, the experience of sitting through this film is no less than being locked inside one. You get a good deal of eerie atmospherics, mind-bending visual effects and a few jump scares - all meant to entertain. Nothing too scary, really. After all, it's a film that’s meant to give its audience an immersive visual experience and ‘Haunted Mansion’ does that satisfactorily. The story lacks puzzling plot twists or shockers in terms of writing and the backstory of the evil ghost is kind of underwhelming.

Writer Katie Dippold skillfully blends horror and comedy with substantial contribution from seasoned comedy veteran Danny DeVito, who plays an amusingly pushy and annoying historian. Tiffany Haddish comes a close second as the self-doubting and loud psychic Harriet, who finally shines in her own moment of darkness. It’s a star-studded outing with cameos that most times fall short of adequately utilising talented actors like Jamie Lee Curtis, who plays Madame Leota, and a miss-if-you-blink appearance by Winona Ryder. Even Jared Leto as the rusty old evil ghost Crump is way too caricaturish, designed much like many other vile horror characters. But overall, the production design (by Darren Gilford) and costumes (by Jeffrey Kurland) are top-notch. LaKeith Stanfield delivers a noteworthy performance as a grieving man, and the talented child actor Chase Dillon and Owen Wilson provide excellent support. Special mention for casting director Carmen Cuba for assembling such a diverse and inclusive cast. However, Kris Bowers' soundtrack proves to be rather mediocre for a spookfest.

In conclusion, 'Haunted Mansion' promises a thrilling ride for tweens and teens alike. It transports viewers into an imaginative realm of ghostly encounters that may not induce fear but are sure to offer a hauntingly good time with friends and family.