The Haunted Mansion [Blu-ray]

Director: Rob Minkoff Rob Minkoff

Overview

Following up The Country Bears and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Disney continued their theme-park-attraction-based film kick with this horror comedy from director Rob Minkoff (Stuart Little). The Haunted Mansion stars Eddie Murphy as Jim Evers, an overworked patriarch who, along with his neglected family, finds himself in mansion inhabited by 999 ghosts. Once the fright wears off, the inhabitants of the other side teach Evers a lesson about the importance of family. Along with Don Knotts, who's had his share of spooky experiences in Disney flicks, the film also stars Terence Stamp, Aree Davis, and Jennifer Tilly.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/17/2006
UPC:	0786936723816
Original Release:	2003
Rating:	PG
Source:	Walt Disney Video
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:28:00
Sales rank:	4,874

Special Features

Feature film: Audio commentary with producer Don Hahn, vfx supervisor Jay Redd and screenwriter David Berenbaum; Audio commentary with director Rob Minkoff and costume designer Mona May; "Anatomy of a Scene: Ghist in the Graveyard"; "History of the Haunted Mansion Attraction"; Blu-Scape: Grave Spirits - A high definition short film by award-winning filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg; Movie showcase: Instant access to select movie scenes that showcase the ultimate in high defintion picture and sound; Seamless menus

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Eddie Murphy	Jim Evers
Terence Stamp	Ramsley
Nathaniel Parker	Master Gracey,Actor
Marsha Thomason	Sara Evers
Jennifer Tilly	Madame Leota
Wallace Shawn	Ezra
Dina Waters	Emma
Marc John Jefferies	Michael
Aree Davis	Megan
Jim Doughan	Mr. Coleman
Steve Hytner	Mr. Silverman
Heather Juergensen	Mrs. Silverman
Jeremy Howard	Hitchhiking Ghost
Deep Roy	Hitchhiking Ghost
Clay Martinez	Hitchhiking Ghost
Zach Minoff	Boy on Bicycle
Shelby Grimm	Singing Bust
Harry J. Campbell	Singing Bust
William T. Lewis	Singing Bust
Tim Reeder	Singing Bust
Bob Hartley	Singing Bust
Dina Spybey	Actor
Rachael Harris	Mrs. Coleman
Don Knotts	Actor
Martin Klebba	Happy Ghost
Mark Mancina	Composer

Technical Credits

David Berenbaum

Rob Minkoff	Director,Executive Producer
David Berenbaum	Screenwriter
Barry Bernardi	Executive Producer
Andrew Gunn	Producer
Don Hahn	Producer
Doug Coleman	Stunts
Gail Goldberg	Casting
Timothy Loughran	Special Effects
Donna Morong	Casting
Jay Redd	Special Effects
Marcia Ross	Casting
Peter G. Travers	Special Effects
Kelsee L. King-Devoreaux	Stunts
David Wyman	Sound/Sound Designer
Robert Sephton	Sound/Sound Designer
Rick Baker	Special Effects

Editorial Reviews

Back in the days when Eddie Murphy was a Raw stand-up comedian, he hilariously observed that you'd never see African Americans in a haunted house movie. Some 20 years later, Murphy proves the exception to the rule with this family-friendly thriller inspired by the Disney theme-park attraction. Murphy portrays glad-handing, workaholic real estate agent Jim Evers, who takes a "20-minute" detour from his neglected family's long-promised vacation to check out a hot property his wife Sarah (Marsha Thomason) has been invited to sell. Despite its swampland proximity, foreboding gates, and backyard cemetery, Jim is dying to close a deal on the property: And if the owner, Master Gracey (Nathaniel Parker), has his way, he will. It turns out that Sarah is the haunting image of Gracey's own dearly departed, who died under suspicious circumstances years before. Murphy mostly plays straight man to this film's supernatural special effects (production segments included on the DVD show how they were created). It's up to the supporting cast -- including Terence Stamp as a terribly stiff butler, Wallace Shawn as a ghostly servant, and Jennifer Tilly as a disembodied Gypsy head encased in a crystal ball -- to scare up most of the laughs. While the chills remain PG all the way, it wouldn’t be a Haunted Mansion without some fitfully frightening scares and shivers: One spirited highlight re-creates the original Haunted Mansion's poltergeist ball; revived corpses chase the kids; and the son is confronted with his worst nightmare, a phalanx of spiders. Murphy may be a mere ghost of his former self, but Haunted Mansion is, like the attraction that inspired it, a wild ride for family fright nights.