Ghostly comedy is a spirited ride with peril, some scares.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
a lot
Suggested death via suicide: A character drinks something that would kill him, and his body is shown lying on the floor next to the bottle. Ghouls, ghosts, and skeletons abound -- including some without heads. Jump scares. A "black widow" type of bride repeatedly flings her ax at the characters. A duel, which leads to the duelers' demise. Character hit by a car, but the scene cuts before impact. Lots of peril. Alligator chases and snaps at characters. Supernatural elements like dark magic, seances, the appearance of a Ouija board.
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Many brand and store names mentioned. A Burger King bag is shown; lingering shot of the logo and a mention of one of their food items, indicating likely product placement. The movie is based on an iconic Disneyland ride.
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
some
Frequent drinking by several adult characters, including to indicate deep depression and to build courage.
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Flashbacks to Ben and Alyssa falling in love and Ben proposing. Characters hug and embrace. Implied romantic interest through lingering looks and knowing smiles. Characters discuss spouses who've passed away.
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Written by female screenwriter Katie Dippold and directed by Justin Simien (who's Black and gay). Diverse cast: Main characters include Black actors LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, and multiracial actor Rosario Dawson (Afro-Latino with Native ancestry), as well as White actors Owen Wilson and Danny DeVito. Centers around romantic and familial love between characters of color and shows Black characters' humanity and vulnerability.
The specifically stated message is that "Grief can be a doorway to joy, if one's willing to work on it." But it's more likely to be understood as "we can't let grief consume us." Either way, the film supports the expression of loss and grief, which is a positive thing.
Positive Role Models
some
Characters show compassion and bravery, using teamwork to face terrifying ghouls in an effort to bring peace to the captured souls. Characters are allowed to experience grief in vulnerable ways and find support through those around them, finding connection.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Haunted Mansion is a tween-friendly supernatural comedy that's the second movie inspired by the classic Disney theme park ride (the first was released in 2003). The frights are similar to horror-comedy classics like Ghostbusters and Beetlejuice: Spirits have an edge of silliness to them, but a couple (like an ax-wielding bride with demon eyes) are genuinely unsettling. Ghosts swirl through the screen in bulk, and characters -- including a child -- are in constant peril. All of this makes the movie more appropriate for older tweens and teens than younger or more sensitive children. Kids who do want to have the (often powerful) experience of "surviving" watching a scary movie will definitely feel like they're watching a fright fest -- but it's creepy, not screamy, and it's balanced with a sense of humor. Themes do touch on moving on after death and loss (for both the spirits and for living characters who are mourning the loss of a loved one). Adult characters drink throughout, and there are hugs/embraces and references to romance and departed spouses. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
A child nearly commits suicide. A grown man nearly commits suicide, and the successful suicide of another man is shown on screen. People are violently chased with axes several times in a very suspenseful and scary way. The main ghost is a serial killer who convinces people to kill themselves by pretending to be dead people that they miss. The child in the movie climbs through the cellar where the serial killer hid his bodies. Two people are possessed, and not in a fun silly way. So beyond inappropriate for children. Show your kids the Eddie Murphy one instead!
Moderate Scares with a great message about Grief and working as a team
The Haunted Mansion attraction fans will be wow'd with the level of detail sourced from the attraction(s!) in the film and newbies will be entertained through and through with a fresh and twisting story of an unlikely group of heroes and also includes heartfelt emotional moments about grief and loss from many walks of life (and afterlife). The movie balances both comedy and eerie otherworldly suspense just like Marc Davis and Claude Coats did with the attractions. Haunted Mansion sets the stage for you to enter the Disney attraction itself with a full backstory on why they're HAPPY haunts if you happen to find yourself at the parks soon!
What's the Story?
In HAUNTED MANSION, single mom Gabbie (Rosario Dawson) and her 9-year-old son, Travis (Chase W. Dillon), move into a New Orleans mansion that's filled with long-buried secrets -- and several unpleasant ghosts. Hoping to cleanse the house of the evil within, Gabbie hires a scrappy team of paranormal experts to help.
Satisfactorily spooky and just the right amount of scary for tweens and young teens, director Justin Simien's film is a true adaptation of the iconic Disney attraction. And in this case, "true" means more accurate than the actual Haunted Mansion ride itself, which was created in 1969 and, although set in New Orleans, didn't feature any people of color. Simien corrects that disconnect by casting Black actors in the primary roles and infusing the movie's backdrop with the sounds, sights, and culture of the Crescent City, from alligators to zydeco.
That said, the ride probably has more twists than this film. The story is pretty routine: There's a problem (a haunted house), we meet the experts who will solve the problem, and then they solve it. The humor level is enough to keep a feeling of lightness, which balances the specters on screen. Many of the characters are mourning the loss of a loved one, and the movie does address this with real heart. As a way to spend a couple of hours as a family, this fright-light comedy is a hauntingly good time. Still, a matinee may be advisable to give kids a few hours of daylight to process everything, in case -- just like in the ride -- an apparition jumps into the backseat of a kid's brain and follows them home.
MPAA explanation:
some thematic elements and scary action
Last updated:
August 21, 2024
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By Tara McNamara
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