NEW HORROR RELEASES - 98) The Muppets Haunted Mansion

"Oh, please...let them rest in peace."

Director

Kirk Thatcher

Cast

Will Arnett - The Ghost Host

Yvette Nicole Brown - Hearse Driver

Darren Criss - The Caretaker

Taraji P. Henson - Constance Hatchaway

Kim Irvine - The Maid

Dave Goelz - voice of Gonzo

Bill Barretta - voice of Pepe

I don't think it's a revelation to say the Muppets have never been quite the same since their creator, Jim Henson, passed away in 1990. That's not necessarily the fault of the Jim Henson Company nor Disney which currently owns the franchise.

To Disney's credit, they've been working to keep the Muppets alive and well, and in front of audiences as best they can despite the best years of Henson's creations being behind them.

The successful Muppet Show, which really made their popularity skyrocket, ran for five seasons from 1976 to 1981. It still holds up today. 

Subsequent programs came along after the success of The Muppet Show but didn't have quite the staying power.

His show The Jim Henson Hour ran for one season on NBC in 1989. It has a similar style to the classic TV anthology series Walt Disney Presents. Henson hosts the show and offers audiences a look behind the scenes to show off new innovations and ideas.

After that, the Muppets returned to prime time television with Muppets Tonight in 1996. New characters were introduced. Some of which have stuck around the Muppet Studios to this day. And much to the show's credit, it won a Primetime Emmy Award for outstanding children's program. 

It has a similar variety show format as The Muppet Show but is certainly more updated in style. Muppets Tonight ran for two seasons on ABC. The show was purchased by the Disney Channel, which ran a few more episodes not seen on ABC.

After several years, the Muppets made a sort of television comeback on ABC with the show The Muppets. It's a docu-style (or mockumentary, as it's often called) sitcom much like The Office. The writers switched the variety show theme with a late night show motif hosted by Miss. Piggy. 

The series, which ran for one season, follows the behind-the-scenes office work of the Muppets. And like most of their past programs, this series features regular guest stars.

I found it somewhat entertaining, but the laughs definitely didn't follow too many of their jokes.  

The streaming service Disney+ airs the current series Muppets Now which premiered in 2020. I've only seen the first two episodes. It consists of multiple segments in an unscripted style viral video or web series format.

Despite all the best efforts, I don't think the Muppets will ever have quite the spark and spirit that they possessed when Henson was running the show. But that's not to say they're no longer entertaining nor completely lost their humor. 

Now, with the Halloween season upon us, Disney decided to pair the Muppets with one of their classic Disneyland attractions, the Haunted Mansion. 

The Great Gonzo and Pepe the King Prawn as themselves 
in The Muppets Haunted Mansion.

The Muppets Haunted Mansion aired Oct. 8 on the streaming service Disney+ and brings together two of my favorite things. Not only do I enjoy the Muppets (The Great Muppet Caper being my favorite of their movies), but as a fan of whatever is considered spooky, the Haunted Mansion is for sure my favorite Disneyland attraction. So, I was excited to sit and watch this new special.

The story centers on Gonzo and Pepe the King Prawn. 

In stead of attending the annual Muppet Halloween party, Gonzo and Pepe decide to head over to a fear challenge event over at a haunted mansion.

Gonzo is excited as its the same mansion his favorite magician, "the Great MacGuffin," had mysteriously disappeared from 100 years ago. 

They're escorted over to this event in a hearse driven by Yvette Nicole Brown. 

When they arrive, they immediately run into a groundskeeper (Darren Criss) and his scrawny looking dog. Soon, they encounter several ghosts popping up from the cemetery on the grounds, along with singing busts as seen on the ride at Disneyland. 

After a catchy song from the groundskeeper and the ghosts manifesting around them, Gonzo and Pepe make their way into the mansion where they're greeted by their "ghost host" (Will Arnett).

The host tells Gonzo he's been summoned to the mansion in order to see if they can survive one over-night stay within. 

If they can, they're welcomed to leave the next morning. If not, he and Pepe will be doomed to stay inside the mansion... forever! (Cue thunderclap.) 

Gonzo is sure of himself that he fears nothing. Pepe, meanwhile, is terrified by everything he encounters within the mansion.

After exploring the house, and encountering several ghosts who resemble the other Muppets back at their Halloween party, the "ghost host" tells Gonzo that to survive the mansion he has to face his fears in room 999. 

It's the first Halloween special to feature the Muppets. And though it's not the sort of horror I've been reviewing here, it has ghosts and talking prawns and such, so...it counts.

The Muppet Haunted Mansion reminds me a bit of another Muppet special - A Muppet Family Christmas. This aired on ABC back in 1987, and is truly one of the best Holiday TV specials out there as it brings all the characters from Jim Henson's mind - Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and the Muppet Babies - into one special.

Like A Muppet Family Christmas, this Halloween special doesn't have much of a storyline. Actually, it doesn't necessarily need any big story. Rather, it has just enough to move things along and keep the audience invested. Otherwise, the self-aware humor as the Muppet characters react and interact with the familiar ghosts of the haunted mansion is the stuff of classics.

In true Muppet fashion, celebrity guests are sprinkled throughout without stealing the spotlight from either the ghosts nor Kermit and his pals. 

It's worth mentioning actor Ed Asner's appearance as one of the mansion's happy haunts, making it his final work as he passed away in August, 2021.  

Director Kirk Thatcher has worked with the Muppets before, and quite successfully. He worked as supervising producer on Muppets Tonight. He directed the Muppets' Bohemian Rhapsody YouTube video in 2009 which won the "Viral Video" category at the Webby Awards. Thatcher also directed the Muppets' Jungle Boogie and Kodachrome music videos. Their first Halloween Special was certainly in good hands.

Will Arnett as "the Ghost Host". 

The songs in this special are catchy, and the jokes garner laughs. In particular, the running joke about timing which involves a skeleton and mummy attempting bolster the fear of the moment had me laughing.

But most significantly, the special works with the Muppet's self-aware humor, breaking the fourth wall, as Gonzo and Pepe interactant with all the familiar Haunted Mansion scenes and characters. 

Disney Imagineer Kim Irvine has a cameo as a maid, and shares a scene with Miss. Piggy who plays the psychic medium, Madame Leota, who conjures the spirits from within her crystal ball. 

It's a significant cameo as her late mother, Leota Toombs, portrays Madam Leota in the séance scene during the Haunted Mansion ride. Nice touch, Disney!

Nothing in the Haunted Mansion is left ignored. Fans of both the attraction and the Muppets are surely going to get what they want out of this TV special, especially as it travels through the whole ride. It doesn't drag on, and none of it feels overdone. It's a fun watch and certainly one of the better Muppet programs around.

NEW HORROR RELEASES - 86) Malefice: A True Story of a Demonic Haunting

"Demons don't ask for prayers." 

Director

Billy Lewis

Cast

Sean Austin

Dave Spinks

Eric Conner

Ralph Sarchie

When it comes to the paranormal, I'm more skeptical of people who call themselves "experts" than I am of the existence of demons and ghosts.

If outer space is the great unknown, life after death is even more so. And the outer-space experts study years to become such.

In regards to spirits and the afterlife, there's so much unknown which we'll only find out after we shuffle off our mortal coil. Do human souls really haunt locations? If so, why would a soul stay in a certain spot for years, even centuries after death? And why do they stay in abandoned homes, attics, and basements? Self-proclaimed paranormal "experts" in movies and programs that surround the topic of ghostly activity often give audiences an answer to the "whys." They might claim with absolute certainty in front of cameras that spirits are bound by "unfinished business" or "they're scared to go towards the light." But what do they know for sure and how do they know it? Being a researcher is one thing. Being an expert of the unknown needs a lot of substance.

I question how someone can claim to be an "expert" in the field of the paranormal. It's a lot speculation and conjecture that's passed off as certainty.

The independent thriller documentary Malefice: A True Story of a Demonic Haunting was released through the streaming service ScareNetwork.tv on June 15. I was invited to watch an early viewing of it. 

The documentary surrounds paranormal investigator Sean Austin, a lead investigator on the Travel Channel series, Ghost Loop, who believes he assisted the souls of deceased women into the next life while conducting a paranormal investigation inside an old house in Ohio five years ago.

He claims these souls were trapped inside the house by malevolent forces, with audio recordings of alleged spirits and demons to back up the claims. According the Austin, these women were kept in the house against their will during their lifetime by someone who tortured and killed them.

Austin also claims that in the five years following this incident, demonic forces have been trying to retaliate for his stealing those souls from it. 

Now, he attempts to rid himself of this demonic infestation in his life once and for all by returning to the original Ohio home with fellow investigators, Dave Spinks and Eric Conner to help him send these demons back to hell.

Paranormal investigator Sean Austin.

The documentary guest stars Ralph Sarchie, a retired New York Police Sargant turned "traditional Catholic" demonologist. Sarchie is the inspiration behind the 2014 horror film Deliver Us From Evil. 

I don't think you can discuss the existence of spirits without going into religion because religious institutions are the front runners in any discussion of an afterlife. So, pardon me if I sound preachy.

Austin's claims his knowledge of what took place in that home- the women who were supposedly tortured and killed - comes from mental images he received during the investigation. All claims are presented as being understood that this is how it all works. There's nothing to back these claims up other than Austin's mental vision. We have to take this history at his word. 

One thing I find frustrating about many paranormal investigation programs is the lack of any serious inquiry towards the spirits people think their communicating with. Not many ask about the reality of the afterlife nor what death is like. Rather, they ask spirits how many fingers are they holding up, and if they can kick a ball around. 

If these investigators are actually in contact with a spirit from beyond, and maybe they are, that's a huge breakthrough as far as any investigation and research is concerned. There's so much to ask about life after death, heaven and hell, and why spirits take up residence in the basement of an abandoned house rather than someplace that's less of a drag. 

To Austin and his team's credit, their questioning is taken more seriously than many popular TV ghost hunting show.

On one of their nights investigating, the crew use radio devices called a Gateway which eliminates radio interruption so ghosts can speak more freely through radio signals. 

They use three of these Gateways in order to provide a wide spectrum of frequencies. I don't follow why spirits need radio signals to communicate. Regardless, Austin does ask the supposed voices he claims are the spirits and even the demon(s) about what took place while these women were alive, and what they endured. These radio voices supposedly back up his claims. And it's all presented as understood.

The claims would certainly be more credible if some historic documentation was presented. But it's not. The only claim of veracity to the backstory of this building is paranormal investigator Austin's mental visions and voices on the radio. How does that verify anything? It would certainly be more believable if there was something substantial indicating what the house was previously used for, and who used to live there. 

Where's the police involvement? Where's the factual history of the house? Who was the previous owner? All the audience has is what Austin saw in his head. 

Catholic prayers and practices are used in the attempt to exorcise the demonic entities. This includes Austin's use of the Roman Rite of Exorcism used by Catholic priests. 

As a Catholic myself, I was under the impression the Roman Rite of Exorcism was reserved for ordained Catholic priests with the explicit permission from their Bishop, following an investigating into the claim of demonic activity, according to Canon Law. That's one thing these paranormal experts don't seem to mention. Exorcist, after all, is one of the minor orders a seminarian receives on his way to becoming a priest. Would the Catholic Church, or any religion, consider mental visions and some radios to be evidence of demonic activity?

And while anyone can say certain prayers of exorcism, such as the Catholic prayer to St. Michael the Archangel which is recited in the movie, the Roman Ritual is reserved for ordained clergy in the Catholic Church. I mention this because of the way those in the documentary present themselves as experts to the audience.

Nevertheless, I have to cheer for their resorting to Catholic prayers. Call me biased, but how could I not do so? 

Demonologist Ralph Sarchie

The intriguing part of this documentary is its "what if" aspect. What if hauntings are real? That's what most of the paranormal programs have going for them as far as keeping an audience's attention. 

It's the ghost story aspect that kept me sticking around to the end. I took the ghosts, or rather the idea that maybe they're actually there, more seriously than the actual living people in the film.

Otherwise, the documentary comes across as pretentious, and with little to fall back on. Aside from the creepiness of the whole scenario, which is done well, the rest is irritatingly self-conceited and frustrating. 

There's hardly anything informative in this documentary for the audience to take away. I'd still like to know if there were, in fact, women who were tortured and killed in this house, and if their remains were ever found.

Malefice is more of a showcase about this team trying to gain evidence of ghosts, and their thoughts along the way. For audiences watching this, thoughts and questions about death, ghosts, and demons are a byproduct of watching a few guys "hunting" ghosts for an hour and a half. The solidity in the documentary's reasons as to why I'm supposed to believe the word of these experts is just ridiculously lacking. All we have is their word. Why? Because they're "experts" of the unknown.