This was recently a problem in the “Paw Patrol” movie, of all things, which seems to be partly homage to the later “Fast & Furious” films. It’s a strange trend in kids movies to try to do the same thing you’d do in an adult movie but tamed down. “Haunted Mansion” also attempts to employ modern horror flourishes that one might see in an R-rated Blumhouse movie but for the under-13 set. This movie gets tangled up in its own mythology and labyrinth of logic. There is a lot of explanation but also somehow not enough as it’s still a little unclear how they get from A to B. The haunted mansion catch is that once you enter the house, a ghost attaches itself to you - just like in the Doom Buggies in the ride - and haunts you until you come back. Gabbie tries to reassure him until she catches her own glimpse of a wandering knight and they book it for the exit. This sequence is perfectly eerie and funny as Travis starts to explore the strange house, immediately noticing creepy oddities. “Haunted Mansion” gets off to a needlessly confusing start, jumping around timelines and introducing its ensemble without much context, including Stanfield’s Ben as a ghost skeptic and, separately, Dawson’s Gabbie and her son Travis (Chase Dillon), as they move into the house in the middle of the night. I do wonder, hauntings aside, what her business plan was for this massive estate. Still, this house has too many rooms and options for one movie - not to mention for a single mom (Dawson) looking to make a fresh start with her snappily dressed son by starting a bed and breakfast. Wasn’t the song about grim grinning ghosts coming out to socialize? This has more in common with the sadistic ” Bird Box Barcelona ” than I thought possible for a Disney movie, but at least someone had the good sense to cast an effortlessly menacing presence like Jared Leto as the bad ghost. The main problem is that “Haunted Mansion” strains to make coherent sense out of the disparate parts of the ride - the paintings, the seance table, the dance hall, Madame Leota - while also trying to tell a sincere story about grief and catharsis. Playing a psychic, she’s a bit more subdued than usual, maybe playing against her character’s elaborate turbans (costumer designer Jeffrey Kurland and his team went all out, in the best way, for this stylish lot). It’s perfect comedic relief, which Haddish, oddly, does not get enough of. Wilson, as a priest who recruits Stanfield to come to the haunted house to investigate, spins every line into gold. It’s too bad because the movie has some great writing, ideas and production design, as well as a cast including Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Tiffany Haddish and Jamie Lee Curtis, who seem game to go big in that way that actors are only really allowed to in movies aimed at a younger audience. This version, directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People”) and written by Katie Dippold (“The Heat” and that iconic Babadook tweet ) is worlds better than the Eddie Murphy disaster, but it’s not really fun, spooky or engaging enough to make much of an impression beyond the moment. Unfortunately, though, this character and performance is housed in ” Haunted Mansion,” Disney’s second attempt in 20 years to make a fun movie out of one of its beloved theme park rides.
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