A widower (LaKeith Stanfield) takes a substantial payout from a single mother (Rosario Dawson) to do spectral photography inside her new mansion. He thinks the job is bullshit until a watery ghost follows him home and he learns that the hauntings only stop once he returns to the mansion. Now, trapped inside with a priest (Owen Wilson), a medium (Tiffany Haddish), and a local historian (Danny DeVito), he must discover what kind of spirit is behind the truly shocking number of murders committed on the property.
Stanfield is just one of those ridiculously charismatic actors. Even in this shameless cash grab, he was riveting. Far better than the movie deserved. He almost single-handedly elevates this from "annoying, gimmicky schlock" to "mostly fun, if a little forgettable and corny." The child actor, Chase Dillon, was also very good and has a promising career ahead of him. There are a bunch of cameos from Jamie Lee Curtis, Daniel Levy, Winona Ryder, Jo Koy, and Marilu Henner. Dawson never gets the credit she deserves but she put in her time here and I respect it.
If you really, really like the Haunted Mansion ride or your kids have seen pretty much all the other family-friendly Halloween movies already, this isn't bad. It's streaming on Disney+.
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