Disney’s ‘Haunted Mansion’ a fun ride on the big screen

By Matt Pascarella

Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 2 hours, 2 minutes

Gabbie and her son Travis are moving to and starting over in a new house, Gracey Manor, with the intention to open a bed-and-breakfast. When strange things begin happening in the house, they are both convinced it’s haunted. They soon call on a dream team of experts to help rid their home of these unwelcome guests. 

They enlist the help of Ben; an astrophysicist, Father Kent, Harriet; a pyschic, and Professor Bruce Davis. They must join forces to banish the Hatbox Ghost, also known as Alistair Crump in this spooky adventure.

“Haunted Mansion” stars LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Owen Wilson, Tiffany Haddish, Danny DeVito, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chase Dillon, Jared Leto, and Charity Jordan.

Ben (Stanfield) is a grieving astrophysicist who developed a camera to detect dark matter. After the loss of his wife, Alyssa (Jordan) he takes over her ghost tours, despite being a non-believer.

When Gabbie (Dawson) and Travis (Dillon) move into Gracey Manor to open a B&B, they discover their house gets frightening, especially after midnight. They call on Ben to see if he can photograph some ghosts with his “ghost camera.” Ben meets Father Kent (Wilson) who has considered doing an exorcism on the manor.

Gabbie tries to convince Ben that setting foot in her home could change the course of his life. Ben’s not buying how scared they are. After being in the manor, Ben experiences strange occurrences at his apartment and now believes the ghost may have followed him home.

He returns to the manor and Gabbie and Travis tell him the hauntings have gotten worse. Ben thinks they need an exorcism, but Father Kent is hesitant.

After Ben explores the house on his own, he says they’ll need more help. They bring in Professor Bruce Davis (DeVito) and psychic Harriet (Haddish). Professor Davis has newspaper clippings detailing the deaths that took place in the manor.

While examining the attic of the manor, they find an old trunk with a crystal ball which houses Madame Leota (Curtis). The group finds a secret séance room and contact the spirit of William Gracey, who owned the manor previously. She explains there is a terrible evil that was summoned long ago; this is Alistair Crump (Leto). If Crump is not banished, the ghosts will remain at Gracey Manor.

Crump wants Ben as his last soul. A reverse séance is performed, and Ben goes looking for Crump.

Crump locks Gracey Manor down, but Ben, Travis and Father Kent have escaped, and traveled to Crump Manor, now a historical site with guided tours, to stop Crump. In Crump Manor, Travis finds Crump’s hat, which can be used as part of the ritual to banish Crump.

One of my favorite rides at Disney World is the Haunted Mansion. This movie has many elements from the ride, from changing picture frames to rising walls, and just an overall air of spookiness. It’s not super scary, though I did jump in my seat once. This is a perfect pre-Halloween treat. It’s funny and sweet in places, but the realistic abundance of ghosts may be too scary for younger audiences. I really enjoyed this action-packed movie and its special effects. Pay attention to the background in Gracey Manor for anything unusual. If you’re a fan of the Disney ride, haunted houses and ghouls, you have to see this one on the big screen.

Crump Manor tour guide Vic gives this movie two thumbs up.

Now showing only in theaters. <

Movie Review: ‘Chip ‘n Dale Rescue Rangers’ nostalgic fun

By Matt Pascarella

Rated: PG

Runtime: 1 hour, 37 minutes

What’s the first thing that pops into your head when you hear “Chippendale?” Obviously, it’s cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale. And maybe next those dancers who were famous for doing something, I forget what. But the third thing is probably the two crime-solving chipmunks who gained fame and (I’m assuming) fortune from their hit TV show “Rescue Rangers.”

Thirty years later, they have a new movie starring the voices of John Mulaney, Andy Samberg, Kiki Layne, Will Arnett, Eric Bana, Flula Borg, Dennis Haysbert, Tress MacNeille, Seth Rogen and J.K. Simmons.

The year is 1982. Chipmunk Dale (Sandberg) is starting a new school in the middle of the third grade and he’s having trouble making friends. All that changes when he meets Chip (Mulaney) and they become inseparable.

Now it is 1990 and the two have just wrapped season three of their popular show “Rescue Rangers.” Everything is going well until Dale tells Chip he’s going to try for his own TV show. Chip expresses concern and says it could put their show in jeopardy. Dale tells Chip he’s done being second banana. Both shows are later canceled.

In present day, Chip is an insurance salesmunk. He gets a message on his landline from co-star Monterey Jack (Bana) telling him he needs help.

Monty tells Chip he owes money to the Valley Gang, or he is in danger of being bootlegged.

Monty also called Dale who has now had CGI surgery which has improved his career. Chip is not happy to see Dale. Dale tells Chip there’s talk of a “Rescue Rangers” reboot; he saw a Facebook fan page about it – and they don’t just give those away.

Chip doesn’t really want anything to do with Dale.

Monty gets kidnapped, and Captain Putty (Simmons) says it’s pretty much hopeless to find him. Chip and Dale put their differences aside and along with police officer and superfan Ellie Steckler (Layne) agree to find Monty.

They go undercover to locate Sweet Pete (Arnett), who runs the entire operation.

The two get in some trouble but must find their friend before it’s too late.

I wouldn’t normally review two kid-oriented movies back-to-back, but this is an exception.

I grew up watching “Rescue Rangers” and in the first 10 minutes of this movie I was brought back with a flood of memories from those days.

Smartly written and funny, this nostalgia-oriented “comeback” is slightly more geared toward adults who may have watched the “Rescue Rangers” growing up. That is not to say kids wouldn’t enjoy it; they would.

It is chock full of references and appearances from a variety of characters from the 1980s and 1990s; from Skeletor to Roger Rabbit to Lumiere.

Simply put, this is a fun movie. The characters have a tongue-in-cheek style humor, and it is pretty action-packed.

This is one for the entire family, whether you grew up watching Chip and Dale or are introducing a new generation to their antics and friendship.

Two “Rescue Rangers” pogs up.  Stay through the credits for more fun.

Available to stream on Disney+. <

Movie Review: “Onward”

By Matt Pascarella

Rated: PG

Run time: 1 hour 42 minutes

Do your kids (or yourself) need a break from social distance learning? Or maybe a suggestion for the fourth or fifth family movie night this week? “Onward” is a decent family movie with messages about believing in yourself, overcoming fear(s) and the importance of family.

It starts ‘Long ago the world was full of wonder. There was magic, which was hard to master, and the world found a simpler way to get by. Over time, the magic faded away.’

Ian Lightfoot, (Tom Holland), an elf, is turning 16. He and his older brother, Barley, (Chris Pratt) lost their father an undetermined amount of time ago. Ian and his brother are polar opposites: Barley has no fear and Ian is afraid of a lot of things.

While out in public, Ian meets a guy who tells him how great his dad was and how sorry he was to hear about his passing. After meeting this guy, Ian makes a list entitled ‘New Me’ to try to step out of his comfort zone. The final item on his list is ‘be more like Dad.’

He starts by inviting some classmates of his to his birthday party but retracts their invitation when he embarrasses himself.

Ian’s mom, Laurel (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) gives both her sons a gift from their father; a magic wand with a spell that can bring him back for only 24 hours. The spell doesn’t work – then it kind of does, leaving only a portion of their dad. They need a phoenix gem to complete the spell. Barley and Ian go on a quest to finish the spell, find the gem and get to spend some time with their dad.

Once Laurel learns what they are doing she goes after them.

Along their way, Barley and Ian meet the Manticore (Octavia Spencer) a mythical Persian legendary creature.

Barley’s van, Guinevere, runs out of gas and the two get into a bit of trouble. Barley helps his brother conquer some of his fears about driving. At one point they cross an invisible bridge and after being chased by the police, reach what they thought is their destination, but they are right back where they started.

Will they find the gem and get to meet their dad before the 24 hours is up?

With an all-star cast, this movie is another Pixar homerun. Toward the end, they really keep you guessing as to whether Ian or Barley are going to see their dad. The end result is not what I thought it was going to be. This was a funny, heartwarming movie that works on a level for both kids and adults, though it’s not as good as “Toy Story” or “Monsters, Inc.” I’d recommend this movie. Two magic wands up.

Movie Review: “Aladdin”

By Kaila Mank

Rated: PG

Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes

The original Disney's “Aladdin” from 1992 directed by Ron Clements has always been an all-time favorite to many. So, when the word was out that the live-action version was coming, there were many doubts. However, if you have seen this latest movie directed by Guy Richie, you can put those doubts to rest. The film was very well put together with everything from the music to the characters matching the original animated version.

We all know the story of the street “rat” Aladdin (played by Mena Massoud), falling in love with the Salton daughter Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott). Aladdin doesn't think he's good enough, so he releases the genie (Will Smith) from his lamp to help him become the Prince of Jasmine’s dreams.

This love story gets interrupted by the villain in the story, Jafar (Marwan Kenzari) who wants to become Salton (Navid Negahban) and will do anything to get it. I thought this overall movie was amazing. The music matched the original, it was funny and must have been one of the most difficult things to do with live-action and the look-alike characters.

The elaborate character, Jafar, would have been one of the hardest to capture in this live-action film – looking much like the animated character in the original movie. The director and the actors did an amazing job with all of it.

So if you haven't seen it yet, I would highly recommend you see it, and it will put those doubts you may have about animated movies being turned into live-action movies to rest.