Haunted Mansion

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details about Haunted Mansion's classification and consumer advice lines
• a review of Haunted Mansion completed by Young Media Australia (YMA) on 25 March 2004.

Overall comments and recommendations

Haunted Mansion is, as its name suggests, a scary movie. Its intention is to scare and thrill which it does quite well. Eddie Murphy, however, as the main character keeps things lighter than they might have been with his own particular sense of humour and comic acting style, which adds many funny moments to this otherwise dark movie.

About the movie

This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) and the associated consumer advice lines.

YMA review

This review of the movie Haunted Mansion contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• use of violence
• material that may scare children
• product placement
• sexual references
• nudity and sexual activity
• use of substances
• coarse language
• the movie's message

A synopsis of the story

Jim and Sara Evers of Evers and Evers Real Estate plan a weekend away with their two children, Megan and Michael, to escape the pressures of work that continually pull Jim away from his family. However, on the way he agrees to overlook a mansion that’s for sale promising it will only take twenty minutes.

When they arrive at the mansion, it is obvious it hasn’t been lived in for a long time—everything in the garden is dead and the house is dark, covered in cobwebs and spooky looking. Unbeknown to the Evers, many years previously, a tragedy unfolded that still haunts the house. The heir of the house, Master Edward Gracey, was in love with a young black woman called Elizabeth, who apparently committed suicide by poisoning herself. On discovering this sad news Edward goes and hangs himself. Elizabeth’s spirit now haunts the house and Edward’s spirit wanders the halls waiting for her to return.

On their arrival at the house, the Evers are greeted by the sombre butler, Ramsley, while a fierce thunder and lightening storm descends on the house. Ramsley takes the Evers to meet his Master, Edward Gracey, who apparently sees in Sara the reincarnation of Elizabeth. The bad storm floods the roads forcing the Evers to spend an uncomfortable night in the mansion. During the night the children are disturbed by a small cloud of light which Megan, the more adventurous of the two, decides to follow taking Michael with her. Jim in the meantime is summoned to Master Gracey and while waiting finds a secret passage which he decides to follow. This leads him to a room where he finds a crystal ball holding the face of Madame Leota, a gypsy, who tells him that the house holds the devil’s curse and in order for it to be lifted the truth must be known. She instructs him to find a key which is located in the mausoleum, a building separate from the mansion. Jim meets up with Megan and Michael and the three of them continue their spooky adventure trying to locate the key and uncover the truth.

The threesome takes a ride in a ghostly coach and encounters many strange ghostly apparitions and terrifying happenings. Meanwhile with the three of them out of the way Master Gracey starts his courtship of Sara who is caught up in the bizarre happenings of his earlier life. Sara’s life is in danger and only Jim and the children’s ability to uncover the truth may save her.

Use of violence

Research shows that children are at risk of learning that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution when violence is glamourised, performed by an attractive hero, successful, has few real life consequences, is set in a comic context and / or is mostly perpetrated by male characters with female victims, or by one race against another.

Repeated exposure to violent content can reinforce the message that violence is an acceptable means of conflict resolution. Repeated exposure also increases the risks that children will become desensitised to the use of violence in real life or develop an exaggerated view about the prevalence and likelihood of violence in their own world.

There is some violence in this movie including the following:

• Jim is knocked out by a flying drum
• A skeleton chases Jim and Jim knocks his head off with a torch
• Skeletons attack Megan with their long bony hands
• The door closes on a skeleton, chopping its hand off
• Jim tries to punch Ramsley
• Ramsley locks the children in a trunk
• Ramsley lifts Jim by the throat and throws him out of the window
• Armed soldiers attack Jim as he tries to free the children and nearly gets his head chopped off.

Material that may scare children

Under eight

Children under eight are most likely to be frightened by scary visual images, such as monsters, physical transformations, the death of a parent or child abandoned or separated from parents, children or animals being hurt or threatened and / or natural disasters.

Most of this movie would scare children in this age group. It is full of supernatural and ghostly images. The following is a sample of scary scenes:

• The start of the movie shows the masked ball from long ago; the music is eerie and there are floating objects. Elizabeth falls down dead after drinking from a cup.
• Edward hangs himself with a rope.
• When the Evers family arrives at the mansion, scary music plays, the gates open by themselves. The front door opens by itself and lightning illuminates Ramsley, the butler, who looks scary with expressionless eyes and white hair.
• Ramsley has the habit of appearing suddenly and startling everyone.
• Jim sees a reflection of himself in a mirror which is gruesome.
• Madame Leota is scary looking, with green eyes.
• Madame Leota and Jim are lifted up to the ceiling and spun around the room. Jim screams hysterically.
• A flashback of Edward hanging is shown.
• Ghosts are everywhere in the mansion and outside; they are trapped there for eternity.
• The scene in the mausoleum is particularly scary; the skeletons are terrifying to look at and try to catch Megan and Jim.
• Jim drops the key through a crack into the water. Megan swims under the water to retrieve it and bumps into a skeleton.
• The coffins all open and skeletons come out of them.
• The door to the mausoleum is covered in spiders; Michael has to overcome his fear of spiders to open the door.
• The children are in a trunk suspended by a chain.
• Ramsley damns everyone to hell; his eyes go white and he looks really evil; spirits start floating around the room. A fire dragon comes out of the fireplace surrounding Ramsley and pulls him into the fiery furnace.
• Sara collapses from drinking poison and appears dead.
• A spirit comes down from heaven and lifts Sara upwards. She’s suspended there while Elizabeth enters her body and speaks through her.

Aged eight to thirteen

Children aged eight to thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic threats and dangers, violence or threat of violence and / or stories in which children are hurt or threatened.

Children in this age group could still be scared by the contents of this movie, particularly the following:

• Edward hanging himself.
• Madame Leota and Jim lifted up to the ceiling and spun around the room. Jim screaming hysterically.
• The skeletons chasing Megan and Jim.
• Megan and Michael shut in the trunk and suspended.
• Ramsley damning everyone to hell, looking really evil.
• Sara apparently dying, being lifted up and Elizabeth speaking through her.

Over the age of thirteen

Children over the age of thirteen are most likely to be frightened by realistic physical harm or threats, molestation or sexual assault and / or threats from aliens or the occult.

Most of the children in this age group would know this is fantasy however they could still be disturbed particularly by the hanging scene and the supernatural occurrences.

Product placement

Research shows that children, particularly children under the age of eight, are vulnerable to product placement in movies. Even if the child doesn’t recall seeing a particular brand in the movie, they will choose that brand in preference to another, if they have just seen it used or displayed in a movie. This effect may be exacerbated if the product is highlighted as part of the story or if an actor or character they admire is seen to endorse or enjoy the product.

No products were displayed or used in this movie.

Sexual references

There are no sexual references.

Nudity and sexual activity

There is no nudity or sexual activity.

Use of substances

There is some drinking of alcohol and smoking of cigars.

Coarse language

There is a little coarse language, including occasional use of “oh my God” and crap.

The movie's message

The take home message is that good triumphs over evil.

Values parents may wish to encourage include:

• overcoming fears
• courage.

Values parents may wish to discourage include:

• trickery and deceit
• the thought that ghosts wander the earth waiting to be set free.