Is Disney truly so creatively bankrupt they have to start remaking movies not even 20 years old? Disney are for some unknown reason remaking The Haunted Mansion movie…even though the original 2003 film is still not officially 20 years old.
Maybe the new movie will be good, but I just hate how hacky Disney has become.
The Haunted Mansion is getting an unnecessary, unneeded, and frankly unwanted remake (not even a sequel) in the form of the new Haunted Mansion (2023) movie, making yet another classic, beloved Disney film subject to the uncreative remake trend. And, needless to say, I’m really not a fan of this idea.
Before anyone starts criticizing me for having an opinion on this film before seeing it or for not giving it a chance, let me just say I agree with you. I’m not going to criticize this film for being a “remake” in the traditional sense of the word as the new trailer signals a darker, more horror-based tone the original Eddie Murphy film had.
In fact, I think this film actually has a chance of being a very decent film if the content, “lore” (if you can really call a spinoff movie based on a Disney ride a lore-filled project), and traditions of the 2003 original are remembered and respected in a way that pays homage to the OG but also builds on the legacy with new ideas/tropes.
That’s not where I have my issues with this project…which is actually very surprising given the fact most of the remake films in this new trend are soulless, corporate hacks that serve nothing to the original plot but to make Disney money. The issue I have with this film is the fact that it’s an unnecessary remake!
“Wait, you’re contradicting yourself, James,” one of you reading this might be saying. “First you say you’re not criticizing this film for being a remake, but your main issue with the film is it being a remake. That doesn’t make sense?” And, I would be inclined to agree with you if the purpose of this remake wasn’t really to “remake” The Haunted Mansion movie.
As I said, I don’t have an issue with a remake taking a different creative spin (not just replacing some members of the cast due to farming controversy views) as that’s perfectly fine in my book, but what I do have an issue with is the fact Disney is just trying to make a quick buck on an old, popular brand name.
Make no mistake, if Disney really wanted to make a compelling horror story…they wouldn’t be remaking The Haunted Mansion. As we’ve seen with some amazing recent horror films, such as Get Out, Hereditary, the original The Conjuring movie, The Witch, A Quiet Place, and Us, you don’t need a preexisting franchise or film to remake or reuse into a classic, beloved modern-day horror classic.
(Walt Disney Studios-Haunted Mansion-Official Trailer)
You can do that by just making an original, compelling script like these films achieved.
The reason why Disney is remaking The Haunted Mansion and not giving their film directors, producers, actors, etc. the license to go out and make their own unique horror films is because they are too scared the movie will “fail” (aka: not bring in a trillion dollars) if it doesn’t have a classic brand name like The Haunted Mansion.
Thus, in their hacky, corporatey desperation to please shareholders in the safest, most assured way, these executives will greenlight a remake of a film that really doesn’t need to be remade.
Films like The Haunted Mansion, The Lion King, Moana, The Little Mermaid, Peter Pan, Mulan, Aladin, Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians (Cruella), Pinocchio, The Jungle Book, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, West Side Story, Snow White (Maleficent), Dumbo, Winnie the Poo (Christopher Robin), and Alice In Wonderland to be exact.
Can you believe I’ve actually written down 18 remakes Disney has made in the last 13 years? That’s an insane number of films being remade, and it gets even worse when you see that Robin Hood, Lilo and Stich, Bambi, Hercules, Snow White (yes, Snow White is getting another remake), The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Lion King 2 (I’ve got no idea what to say about this one), and Bambi are all scheduled for remakes as well.
I hate to say it, but Walt Disney Studios is no longer the creative, imaginative, and awe-inspiring studio that made some of the greatest ever films to grace our eyes. All creativity and ingenuity have been replaced with corporate remakes, unwanted sequels, trashy “live action” adaptations, and downright boring films.
And The Haunted Mansion has sadly fallen victim to this trend.
Images Source: Featured Image: (Images Source: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailer/Image Creator: Walt Disney Studios) (The Haunted Mansion (2003) – YouTube)
In Tex Image 1: (Walt Disney Studios) (Haunted Mansion | Official Trailer – YouTube)
