In Louisiana lives a realtor couple named Jim and Sara Evers. They also have 2 kids named Megan and Michael.

Jim is very outgoing and spends a lot of time with his co-workers and friends. However, he ends up missing his and Sara’s anniversary.

When he gets home, Sara is very disappointed in him. No matter how kind he is, and how much he tries to distract her, Sara’s feelings are final.

His son, Michael, sees a spider and gets scared. But Jim tries to “man up” Michael and push him to kill the spider.

After several failed attempts for Jim to get Michael to change, Megan kills the spider.

But Jim still considers amends for missing his and Sara’s anniversary. He decides to take a vacation to a lake nearby.

During their drive, Sara finds out that the residents at this place, called Gracey Manor, are interested in negotiating a sale. Jim is excited and eager to make the deal.

So, the family stops at Gracey manor. They meet not only the owner Edward Gracey, but also his servants.

Without warning, a thunderstorm floods the river. Since it’s now unsafe for the Evers to resume their trip, Gracey and his servants let them stay for the night.

However, wild and crazy things occur in this haunted mansion. From ghosts to shocking discoveries, the life of the Evers may never be the same again.

I have seen this movie before – many years ago. So, I decided to give it a shot and rewatch it, just before Halloween.

Eddie Murphy nailed his part of Jim by executing the appropriate amount and type of humor. He was very much like Donkey in the Shrek movies, whom you likely know did the voice of, as well.

By focusing the story on an adult main character and having him dealing with grown-up matters like anniversaries and careers, Disney succeeded in having it attract adult viewers like me. Yet they were also good at keeping the content family-friendly simultaneously.

Therefore, even during the moments inside that mansion, nothing really scared me. That being said, this movie is not without its flaws.

I will admit that the pacing seemed to lag at times. More importantly, the plot was a bit hard to follow.

Overall, I thought The Haunted Mansion was just okay. You might enjoy it, though, whether you were around in 2003 or not till later.

I give this film 3 out of 5 stars.