It really appears that Disney, once a cultural juggernaut, is struggling to produce blockbuster movies on the scale it used to. Whether it is a matter of poor leadership or creative bankruptcy, Disney films no longer possess the magic they once had.
While Warner Bros and Universal revel in the success of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer”, respectively, the Walt Disney Company is weakly throwing its hat into the ring with the release of “Haunted Mansion”.
And speaking of Oppenheimer, Disney seems to be trying to outdo the historical scientist by creating another bomb – at the box office, that is.
“Haunted Mansion” is projected to rake in US$25-30 million this weekend in the United States – which would be OK for a kids’ film, if the studio hadn’t spent US$158 million (RM715 million) on it! That’s even more than Warner Bros did for “Barbie”, and at least that film has made its money back!
Indeed, who the heck thought it would be smart to release a Halloween film about a haunted house in July?! Aduhai.
Anyway, what’s it about? Based on the theme-park ride at Disneyland, the horror-comedy follows one Ben Matthias (Lakeith Stanfield), a depressed scientist.
Matthias is employed by Father Kent (Owen Wilson), a happy-go-lucky priest who needs Matthias’ ghost-detecting camera (apparently a thing) to solve a predicament.
As it turns out, single mother Gabbie (Rosario Dawson) and her son Travis (Chase W Dillon) have moved into the titular home – and, of course, supernatural shenanigans have ensued.
Realising the spooky severity of the situation, Matthias ropes in history professor Bruce (Danny DeVito) and medium Harriet (Tiffany Hadish), and together, they uncover the secrets of the Gracey Manor, only to learn there is more to the place than just restless spirits.
For a film that deals with the afterlife, it was certainly caught in the clutches of development hell for a bit, with pre-production starting all the way back in 2010.
Director Guillermo del Toro, of “Pan’s Labyrinth” and “Pacific Rim” fame, was initially slated to take the helm, but talks eventually fell through.
The idea that throwing money at a movie makes it good is an inherently false one, if “Haunted Mansion” is any indicator. Which isn’t to say that this is the worst thing to have ever graced the silver screen. No, the problem lies more with how… well… mediocre it is.
In the run-up to watching “Haunted Mansion”, this reviewer actually watched the 2003 release of the same title, which is also based on the same property.
That film was also critically panned back then, even though Eddie Murphy’s onscreen antics made it a whole lot more tolerable. It also benefited from a very hammy villain in the form of Terence Stamp, who clearly was having fun playing the most self-satisfied butler alive (and dead).
More importantly, that film had funny jokes and gags – mostly directed at children, but jokes nonetheless.
The 2023 release, on the other hand, seems to be grappling with an identity crisis over which demographic it is supposed to entertain.
“Haunted Mansion” is neither funny enough for the kids nor scary enough for the adults. For a horror comedy to fail at its two jobs is a bad sign.
It is a shame, truly. The film boasts a star-studded cast, with some great actors doing all they can to add value to it. Danny DeVito is always a delight to watch, with his loud, recognisable voice and humour – despite his stature – bringing some much-needed levity.
And Owen Wilson is always a welcome sight. His character of Fr Kent is… well, just Owen Wilson just being himself in a priest’s garments. “Wow.”
Still, one can’t help but feel that lead actor Stanfield may have been miscast. He is a talented actor who does well when it comes to dramatic, emotional moments; and while there are such instances here, much of its two-hour runtime sees his character trying to grapple with the existence of the supernatural.
This skepticism limits the enjoyability factor of the main character. After all, what’s the best kind of protagonist for this sort of film? A chicken-hearted coward – the sort who’d duck under a table the moment a ghost politely coughs!
Think of “Scooby Doo” – those cartoons are fun because the main characters run around in terror as masked villains chase them around!
At the end of the day, the fact of that matter is that “Haunted Mansion” is not particularly offensive to the senses, so it may be worth a watch if you think you will enjoy it.
But given that it is the latest in Disney’s ever-growing string of box-office bombs, perhaps it’s high time for the Mouse to rethink its strategy.
And with this year being its 100th anniversary, forget a mid-life crisis: Disney is experiencing a full-life crisis right here.
As of press time, ‘Haunted Mansion’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.