Muppets Haunted Mansion Provides Delightful Halloween Fun

 I have loved the Muppets for pretty much my entire life.  I grew up watching Sesame Street and The Muppet Show.  I have seen all the Muppet movies - the ones made for tv and all the ones that were released in theaters.  I have watched all the tv shows.  Even though I was interested in some of the things that were exclusive to Disney +, I only signed up once Muppets Now was being released.  The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance is what got me to finally sign up for Netflix.  If the Muppets are involved, I will watch it.  I have enjoyed all of the Muppet movies and shows, though some have been better than others.  I have been looking forward to Muppets Haunted Mansion since I first heard about it earlier this year and it did not disappoint me.  I have already watched it twice and I’m sure I’ll be watching it more.

Muppets Haunted Mansion is a Halloween special that is only available on Disney +.  It became available to view on October 8, 2021.  It is short at only 49 minutes long, but it is very entertaining and well worth watching.  I would not have minded if it had been a bit longer.  The story is resolved by the end without things feeling rushed.  The special features Muppet characters and elements from the Disney attraction The Haunted Mansion.  It is the first Halloween special featuring the Muppets.

Gonzo has been invited to an event at a haunted house with ties to his favorite magician, The Great MacGuffin, on the same night that the Muppets are having their Halloween party.  Pepe the King Prawn is going with Gonzo and thinks they are going to a party full of famous people.  Once they arrive and receive a few warnings about the house being haunted, they start to realize that something else is going on.  The Host shares that Gonzo was invited to see if he could survive a night in the mansion with the ghosts.  If he can’t, he and Pepe will be trapped there forever.  Gonzo encountered several ghosts, some of which resemble their friends.  One ghost, Constance Hatchaway, sets her sights on one of them.

There are no extra scenes in the credits, but a version of Dancing in the Moonlight performed by Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem plays over the credits while little bits showing the human cast singing and dancing with the Muppets is shown.  It is just fun and joyful that it had me smiling as soon as it started.  It is just delightful and makes me so happy.  It really looks like the human actors were having fun with this part. The part with the song is on YouTube and I don’t even know how many times I have watched it.  It truly fills me with joy and makes me happy.  I honestly can’t remember the last time I felt this happy watching something.

Gonzo and Pepe are the main Muppet characters in Muppets Haunted Mansion.  It is not the first time for Gonzo to be in this position in one of the Muppet projects.  That started with A Muppet Christmas Carol, though he was paired with Rizzo then and in other projects after that.  It was a little odd to me for Rizzo to not be with Gonzo.  From what I have been able to find out, Rizzo was retired after Steve Whitmire was fired in 2018 instead of another performer taking over the character.  Rizzo was originally created by Whitmire and no one else has ever performed the character.  Pepe is fine, but I did miss Rizzo being with Gonzo.  The two characters have worked together well previously, so it is a bit different but it still works.

The story for Muppets Haunted Mansion is straightforward without any major surprises.  That didn’t make it any less fun or entertaining for me.  There are a few more heartfelt moments that I hadn’t expected before I started to watch.  Those bits do fit in with what is going on well and they fit with the Muppets overall as well since there is usually something like that in most Muppet projects.  It has a spooky feeling without being really scary.  There is one or two small jump scare like moments that do work with what is going on.  Those things could scare children more, but I do think this is very family friendly.  It is a fun Halloween special that is well worth watching.  There is humor throughout as well.  Some of it is a little corny, but that works too.  It is the same type of humor that turns up in most Muppet projects.  .  

Music has always been a part of every Muppet project and Muppets Haunted Mansion is no different.  A little bit of the cover of Dancing in the Moonlight plays at the very beginning.  I was a little disappointed when the whole song didn’t play at that point.  I was very happy when it played through the credits and the inclusion of the footage of the actors singing and dancing with the Muppets made it perfect.  There is also a cover of Grim Grinning Ghosts from the Haunted Mansion attraction.  There are three new original songs, Rest in Peace, Life Hereafter, and Tie the Knot Tango.  The songs fit in well and help to move the story along.

Some of the Muppets are shown briefly as themselves as the Halloween party that is briefly shown when Gonzo talks to Kermit on the phone at the beginning of Muppets Haunted Mansion.  The Muppets are wearing costumes for Halloween.  Kermit is dressed as Miss Piggy and Miss Piggy is dressed as Kermit.  That was not something I had expected and while it was a tad different, I am ok with it.  Once Gonzo and Pepe are inside the mansion, several of the various ghosts look like their friends.  The ghosts have a transparent, glowy look.  I have no idea how that was done, but I’m sure some sort of special effects were used.  The human ghosts have the same sort of look, though I think they did seem to glow a little more than the Muppet ghosts.   

There are references to previous Muppet projects, the Haunted Mansion attraction, and even a few other scary movies throughout Muppets Haunted Mansion.  The wallpaper in the mansion looks like what is in the attraction, though it is a Muppet version.  Miss Piggy shows up as Madam Pigota, a version of a character from the attraction.  There are other ghosts that are versions of ghosts from the attraction.  At one point, Muppet ghosts are dancing and telling each other bad jokes, which is like the At the Dance sketch from The Muppet Show.  Wayne and Wanda, two Muppet characters that have been rarely seen since the first season of The Muppet Show turn up.  I also spotted Johnny Fiama, Sal Minella, Lew Zealand, Nigel, Crazy Harry, and Marvin Suggs and a version of his Muppaphone briefly.  Some people who haven’t been watching the Muppets as long may not recognize all of the Muppet characters that make some kind of appearance.  It made me very happy to see so many of the characters again.

Matt Vogel now performs as Kermit.  He took over the part after Steve Whitmire was fired.  Vogel has been working with The Jim Henson Company since the 1990s, taking over several characters, including some on Sesame Street, as the original performers retired or passed away.  Vogel performed as multiple Muppets in Muppets Haunted Mansion.  His Kermit still sounds different to me, though I haven’t seen that much of his as Kermit yet.  Whitmire was Kermit for just over twenty years, so I had a lot of time to get use to his version of the character.  I thought Kermit didn’t sound right when Whitmire first took over the part as well.  I think Vogel’s Kermit sounds closer to Henson’s Kermit than Whitmire’s did.  I did watch The Muppet Movie again after watching this special, and Vogel’s Kermit doesn’t sound as different to me after doing that.  Several Muppet characters appear at least briefly.  It would have been nice if some of the characters had more to do, but it makes sense given the time limits of the special.  

Will Arnett as the Host has the biggest part of the human cast.  The other human actors just show up briefly, usually as a ghost of some kind.  Many of them are just on screen for a minute or two.  That has happened in all of the previous Muppet movies and specials as well.  There would be one or two main human characters, and the others would be in short cameos.  

Muppets Haunted Mansion is a little silly at times, but it is very fun and entertaining.  I think it is the best thing with the Muppets in many years While I enjoyed the 2015 series The Muppets overall, I didn’t like the changes to the personalities of some characters, especially Kermit.  Those changes seem to be forgotten with this special, which I think is a good thing.  It is delightful and gave me so much joy to watch.  It really reminds me of the Muppets of my childhood and that makes me so happy.  It also makes me hopeful for more good Muppet projects in the future. 

Reminiscence is a Unique Thriller

I have enjoyed most of the movies I have seen Hugh Jackman in over the years and I am usually interested in seeing his new movies.  I saw one commercial for his newest movie, Reminiscence, shortly before the release date.  That was the only promotion I saw for the movie.  I wasn’t exactly sure what it was about, but I was interested in watching it.

Reminiscence was released to theaters on August 20, 2021.  It was also available on HBO Max for a month.  I did watch the movie on HBO Max shortly before that month was up.  I think the movie will be available there again in the future, but I don’t know when at this point.  

I really didn’t know what Reminiscence was about when I watched it.  I am only going to briefly discuss the plot of the movie.

** Minor Plot Discussion**

In the not to distant future, climate changes have caused major issues.  Miami has flooded and the heat is too extreme for people to do much of anything during the day hours, so most people now live at night.  Nick Bannister has a business that allows people to relive memories.  He and his business partner Watts also sometimes work for the local prosecutor to help in questioning people.  Something happens with a client that makes Nick start to spiral out of control.

**End of Minor Plot Discussion**

Reminiscence is just under two hours long.  It is rated PG-13.  There is some violence in a few scenes without it being a violent movie overall.  There are elements of a noir movie and mystery to what is going on, as well as some science fiction elements connected to the memory stuff.  I think that works for the movie.  The story is somewhat complicated, but I don’t think it is difficult to follow.  I wasn’t able to figure everything out.  The movie is definitely different.  Some people may not like that.  I did.  It is one of the more unique movies I have seen in a long time.  The movie is the directorial debut of Lisa Joy, one of the creators of the HBO series Westworld.  I have seen that the movie didn’t do well at the box office.  I think part of the reason why could be that there was not much promotion for it before it was released.  The fact that the pandemic is still going on probably had something to do with that as well.  

Memories play a big part in Reminiscence and several are shared throughout the movie.  A new type of technology has been developed that allows people to more fully visit specific memories.  It was originally developed for interrogations, but a use in the private sector was also discovered.  Nick is not the only person to have a business like his, though it seems like his may be considered a bit more run down.  His location definitely isn’t fancy and it is just him and Watts working there.  I believe there are other more high class types of businesses, though Nick is the one that the prosecutor turns to for help.  He did start doing it for interrogation purposes while he was still in the military.  Watts was in the military with him.  Neither of them talk about that time much, but things from that time do come up once or twice.  Watts has some of her own issues in her past that she hasn’t fully dealt with as well.  Most of the times when a memory is shared, it is clear that it is a memory.  There are times when it isn’t clear at first if what is happening is a memory or not, and some people may not like that aspect of the movie. There was once or twice during a memory that something is shown that the person having the memory shouldn’t have known, like something that happened when they weren’t in the room.   

The movie is mostly focused on Nick and what he is going through.  He is somewhat complicated and he makes questionable choices at times.  He is an interesting character.  Hugh Jackman is good in the part.  Watts is the woman who works with Nick.  They were in the military together.  She has some issues of her own that come up a few times.  She and Nick do work well together for the most part, but they don’t always agree on things.  Thandiwe Newton is really good in the part.  Rebecca Ferguson does a good job as Mae, a somewhat mysterious client that Nick becomes obsessed with.  A few of Nick’s other clients turn up as well as some people that are part of some of the memories.  Some of the characters aren’t developed that much, but that works for the game.

Reminiscence is a bit different, but I think it is an entertaining movie that is worth watching.  I keep hearing people say they want original movies instead of the same types of stories over and over or more remakes/reboots.  Reminiscence is definitely original and it deserves to be seen.