Dreadfully Boring

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.

It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

It was a good mix of funny and "horror." All those people who give Eddie Murphy and the other actors crap are just being mean. Yes, there were a few things that didn't make sense, and there were changes that could have been made. But that's the case with nearly every movie.

Based off of the Haunted Mansion attraction at Disneyland, this movie is about Realtor Jim Evers whom was asked to to sell the famed mansion by the owner. So, he and his family are summoned to the mysterious place and soon ends up being caught in its paranormal world.It's a better film that I've expected - solid plot, funny (but not over-the-top) acting, incredible visual effects, and catchy music. I liked all the references to the Disneyland attraction like Madame Leota, the singing busts, the lost traveler and his dog, the moving portraits and the floating candlesticks. The story about the groom looking for his lost bride fits the attraction-based movie well and it mixes in with the Evers realty subplot perfectly.Eddie Murphy was his classic funny self and gave off some really hilarious moments in the movie, especially him getting creep-ed out by all the hauntings in the old house. His kids in the movie, though, were a tad annoying at times, but I could tolerate them. The ghost characters were entertaining to watch; especially liked the famous Madame Leota character - floating around in her crystal ball with intrigue and suspense.The film, though, could have used more creepy and gotcha moments, but overall, it's an entertaining family film.Grade B+

Jim Evers (Eddie Murphy) is a hard-working real estate agent who doesn't have time for his family. After missing their wedding anniversary, he proposes to go down to the lake. His wife Sara (Marsha Thomason) gets a call from Gracey Manor looking to sell. Sara is reluctant to go but Jim drags her and the kids to meet Edward Gracey (Nathaniel Parker). A storm floods out the road and the Evers are forced to stay. Ramsley (Terence Stamp) is the stiff creepy butler. The manor is web-filled and Gothic with a vast cemetery in the back. Jim stumbles onto a secret passage and encounters Madame Leota (Jennifer Tilly), a gypsy ghost locked in a crystal ball. The kids follow a spectral orb up to the attic and finds a portrait that looks exactly like their mother where they meet house staff Emma (Dina Spybey) and Ezra (Wallace Shawn) who are actually ghosts.Eddie Murphy is pushing too hard to be a jerk. It's no surprise that he succeeds. His character is a jerk and doesn't come off well. Eddie isn't funny anymore. This movie is not scary. It's PG and has no edge to it. Marsha Thomason seems sweet but not very compelling. I do like the kids. This movie needed to work on their level. Essentially, it needed to be their movie if the PG rating needs to stick. The scares are always heightened when the audience sees it through children's eyes. The only fun part is when Eddie and the kids are looking for the key in the cemetery. The kids battle some scary stuff. I just wish the rest of the movie is more like that.

I have a personal history of hatred and contempt for this piece of crap Eddie Murphy apparently calls a movie. Once every few years this movie has come to hunt me back, twice at school and thrice on TV. Even when I was 8 I hated this, six years have passed and the situation isn't much better. The biggest flaw of this movie is its humor, which practically non- existent. Eddie Murphy just wobbled around the haunted mansion and blurts out supposedly funny. Another huge flaw is that the characters are mostly uninteresting, and when they aren't they are simply walking comedic atrocities, with unfunny jokes and annoying voices galore! However, it's not all bad. The actors playing the various roles are not bad (except for of course the big Eddie), and the sets are so delightfully corny. However, decent acting and sets is not enough to make up for a terrible screenplay and atrocious humor.In the end, I give this movie a 2 out of ten, because at least it is not Mr. Popper's penguins...another film that has haunted me from the day I saw it.