Halloween Horror: The Haunted Mansion (2003)

When it came out 20 years ago, The Haunted Mansion was largely perceived as the lackluster theme park movie follow-up to Disney’s great new live-action success, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (which I also revisited this year). After Pirates blew away expectations in the summer of 2003, The Haunted Mansion premiered, not in October, but at the start of the American holiday season (I will never understand Hollywood’s dislike for releasing obvious Halloween movies in October). The film, starring Eddie Murphy and directed by Rob Minkoff, generated modest box office success but little critical love. I had expected to begin this review with this being the end of the story.

I was surprised to discover, however, that over the past two decades, The Haunted Mansion has slowly emerged as an object of fandom, fuelled mainly by millennial parents revisiting the movie with their children for Halloween. One need only compare the more recent reviews on the film’s IMDb page to the older ones to see the shift in reception. The obvious point of comparison would be Hocus Pocus (1993), which was another lukewarm arrival that has grown into a genuine cult film, inspiring not only a (dreadful) legacy sequel on Disney+ last fall, but also LEGO sets and viewing parties. The Haunted Mansion has not grown so big in its aftermath, but the film having any legacy still surprised me, even if perhaps it shouldn’t have. Although I never saw The Haunted Mansion in 2003 and thus have no nostalgia for it, I did seek it out this year to watch with my young sons. 

Beyond the interest of its evolving reception history, does The Haunted Mansion merit any attention? Is the movie worth showing to your kids, let alone sitting down to enjoy yourself? 

My quick take is that Eddie Murphy’s Haunted Mansion is an effective spooky movie for children and families. Directed by Rob Minkoff, who co-directed The Lion King (1994) and helmed the Stuart Little movies (1999 and 2002) and The Forbidden Kingdom (2008), the film boasts excellent make-up by the legendary Rick Baker, extravagant production design, an actual plot that develops to a coherent and compelling conclusion, and Eddie Murphy’s energetic presence (in family-movie mode, of course).

As you’d expect, The Haunted Mansion is never very scary for adults, but there is genuine atmosphere as well as a couple effective jump scares. The standout horror sequence involves escaping resurrected dead bodies in a crypt, and that scene nicely exploits the tension (my kids were standing during it) for both fearful anticipation and anxious laughs. The best part is the film’s dedication to generating and sustaining a compelling scenario and enjoyable set-pieces within the haunted mansion setting. 

Jim Evers (Eddie Murphy) and his wife Sara (Marsha Thomason) are a real estate agent duo, Evers and Evers. As in all family movies, Murphy is a father who works too much, so they decide to go on vacation to the lake with the kids. The catch is that on the way they have to stop by a lavish old property that is just too special to pass up checking out. Once they arrive at the mansion, the creepy old butler (played by Terrance Stamp) and his tortured lone master (Nathaniel Parker) invite the Evers to stay the night, just like in every haunted house story. 

The pleasure is how Minkoff and screenwriter David Berenbaum use the different clichéd elements and contain a series of believable causes and effects within the sprawling property and its grounds. Alongside the Evers, we explore the setting and its history and its ghostly inhabitants in a manner that obviously recalls the theme park ride’s nature, yet never feels mechanical or forced. The story isn’t special but the fact that it’s clear and developed and coherent is a bonus when we consider how it could have been a total toss-away storyline.

The Haunted Mansion does not transcend its conventional material, but it cannot be blamed for that. Transcending genre conventions cannot be the norm. Like a good ghost story or a good action movie, often the pleasure is in someone delivering the expected elements in proper and effective fashion, with some charm and ability and variation. This is the film’s modest success. 

To the shame of the horror genre, there are not many solidly-made, effective, and appropriately spooky children’s Halloween movies (someday, I will write about how Hocus Pocus is the last gasp of the Spielberg and Dante-era family movie, even if I despise the recent sequel). So, strangely, I now understand why The Haunted Mansion has lasted the past 20 years and even inspired a reboot with 2023’s Haunted Mansion. I will have to see how the update compares.

6 out of 10

The Haunted Mansion (2003, USA)

Directed by Rob Minkoff; screenplay by David Berenbaum, based on the Walt Disney theme park attraction; starring Eddie Murphy, Terence Stamp, Wallace Shawn, Marsha Thomason, Nathaniel Parker, Aree Davis, Marc John Jefferies, and Jennifer Tilly.

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