I remain completely convinced that there is a fantastic film rooted within the fictional story of the Haunted Mansion. However, a complete lack of imagination once again forces us down a lazy route in which a story is hap-hazarsly built around the most popular features of the attraction. Constance? Yes, just create a scene where they find an attic. Hitchhiking Ghosts? They can just pop up outside. The Paintings? Easy - there are walls everywhere. Just throw in some cheap gags, an unnecessary soppy plot and the typical "Ha, Ghosts aren't real!" skeptic and bingo! You've got yourself a Haunted Mansion film!
The only entertainment comes from spotting elements of the attractions in the background, and it's good to see the infamous Hat Box Ghost getting some much deserved recognition. But it's all so predictable.
It seems that the opportunity to showcase the attractions' amazing backstories has once again been missed. Rather than plonking a random family in the Mansion with the inevitable task of "helping the Ghosts find peace", wouldn't it be great to understand how it all got there in the first place?! I accept that we do get a convenient backstory for Crump, Leota and - to an extent - Gracey ... but wouldn't it be more interesting to understand how it all came together? Chuck in elements of Phantom Manor and you're well away - (the links to Thunder Mesa (Big Thunder Mountain) are creative genius)! Where did Constance come from? Who are The Hitchikers? If the Ghost Host is Gracey ... this changes the character completely!
The issue here is the screenwriters basing a story around the features of the attraction as opposed to the world in which the attraction is based. This is why Pirates was so popular. It wasn't just a bunch of random pirates coming across a skeleton steering a ship, or a guy auctioning off townswomen, or a woman shouting at her husband ("Carlos!") - it was a story based in the swashbuckling and rum-guzzling world that the attraction is a part of.
Sadly, and pardon the pun, I feel like this is the final nail in the coffin for our Haunted Mansion adventures. If only Mr Del Toro had been able to get his foot in the door first; I think that would have been truly magnificent.
The only entertainment comes from spotting elements of the attractions in the background, and it's good to see the infamous Hat Box Ghost getting some much deserved recognition. But it's all so predictable.
It seems that the opportunity to showcase the attractions' amazing backstories has once again been missed. Rather than plonking a random family in the Mansion with the inevitable task of "helping the Ghosts find peace", wouldn't it be great to understand how it all got there in the first place?! I accept that we do get a convenient backstory for Crump, Leota and - to an extent - Gracey ... but wouldn't it be more interesting to understand how it all came together? Chuck in elements of Phantom Manor and you're well away - (the links to Thunder Mesa (Big Thunder Mountain) are creative genius)! Where did Constance come from? Who are The Hitchikers? If the Ghost Host is Gracey ... this changes the character completely!
The issue here is the screenwriters basing a story around the features of the attraction as opposed to the world in which the attraction is based. This is why Pirates was so popular. It wasn't just a bunch of random pirates coming across a skeleton steering a ship, or a guy auctioning off townswomen, or a woman shouting at her husband ("Carlos!") - it was a story based in the swashbuckling and rum-guzzling world that the attraction is a part of.
Sadly, and pardon the pun, I feel like this is the final nail in the coffin for our Haunted Mansion adventures. If only Mr Del Toro had been able to get his foot in the door first; I think that would have been truly magnificent.