Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021) Poster

(2021 TV Special)

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5/10
Cute and fun but missing something.
csteinmayer-2514110 October 2021
Overall this was cute and entertaining. The songs were good and the puppetry was alright. Unfortunately these later Muppet outings will never live up to what the original artists could deliver. Doubt that? Go and watch the original The Muppet Show, or The Muppet Movie. In this case, Kermit was all wrong. His voice was so far off as to be almost unrecognizable. Bring back Steve Whitmire! At least his Kermit voice was close to Jim Hensons. Miss Piggy was also off, not just the voicing, her character was missing all of its nuance. At least we had Dave Goelz there for Gonzo.
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5/10
Poor Kermit
christopherbjones9 October 2021
What in the name of cheap awfulness has happened to Kermit's voice. I was enjoying the film until Kermit spoke. Even our 4-year-old questioned it. My wife's impression of Kermit is better, and her impression is awful.

Disney need to rectify this. Never before has their character integrity been this poor. It's nothing like him.
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5/10
Killed an hour...
stal-1365214 November 2021
Not the greatest output by our furry friends but it killed an hour and kept the kids quiet.

I'm aware the voice actor for Kermit has changed but I didn't realise we were now having to just ignore the fact it sounds like Kermy permanently has a cold.

I can actually do the voice better. Disney, if you're reading this, I'm happy to talk....
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7/10
Atleast it's better than Muppets Now
cte1814 October 2021
Muppets Haunted Mansion isn't a perfect Halloween special but you have to admit it resolves a lot of problems from Muppets Now. The jokes are better, the characters aren't off, the celebrities aren't a waste of time and actually have decent acting, the sets looked neat, and it even references the original Muppet Show. If there is one thing I don't like about this special it's obviously Matt Vogel doing Kermit the Frog's voice but Kermit doesn't have a main role here so it's not very distracting. This special mostly did a solid job. It may not be the Kermit we wanted or the quality of a Muppet movie from the Jim Henson era, but it atleast solves a lot of the problems that Muppets Now had. So I'm fine with it.
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7/10
👻 spooktacular
adamsmith-510049 October 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Set on Halloween night, Gonzo and Pepe skip out on Kermit and Miss Piggy's big party to accept the challenge of staying overnight in the creepy mansion of famed magician The Great MacGuffin on the 100th anniversary of his disappearance. Since Gonzo has proven over and over again that he has no fear, he figures the night will be a lark. Pepe, not so much.

The mansion itself is modeled on the much-loved theme park ride, The Haunted Mansion, with The Muppets slipping into the iconic characters found inside and outside of the ride. The swaps are pretty inspired, from Fozzie as the Hatbox bear (including teeth!) to Piggy as the disembodied crystal ball head of Madame Pigota. The Muppet wit is particularly funny and ranges from the extremely clever to the familiar, like Waldorf and Statler as heckling ghosts inside the ride carts, down to the incredibly silly; wait for the goat.

There are also three new original songs that lend themselves nicely to the Mansion theme, with some gifted pun usage. They may not be instant classics on par with recent efforts for the last two Muppet films, but they are a lot of fun and utilize the depth and breadth of the Muppet bench to bring them to life. A great Muppet special which includes some deep cut appearances like the ghosts in the mansion (going back to The Muppet Show days) to newbies like Walter and Joe the Weasel.

As for the humans, Will Arnett is great performing with the Muppets. Taraji P. Henson is also having a great time as resident widow ghost, Constance Hatchaway. Her side story goes on a little too long in parts but her storyline will appeal to the hardcore Haunted Mansion fans. The rogue's gallery of other human talent are basically relegated to very small cameos but that means the focus can remain on Gonzo and the other Muppets, as it should.

The Muppets at their best are timeless, and this special captures much of that spirit.

The Muppets have had some bumpy years under their Disney ownership with the company trying to reinvent them for contemporary audiences. What they keep forgetting is that The Muppets at their best are timeless and this special captures much of that spirit because of the performances and writing. The old-timers of the current Muppet crew, they convey the right blend of Henson heart and silliness that makes this offering one worthy of a yearly watch.

Muppets Haunted Mansion gets the right mix of The Muppets with the classic Disney theme parks ride. It works really well because of the ingenious mix of Halloween with two much-loved properties that all blend together perfectly. From the production design to the cameos, all down the way to Gonzo's impactful and wee bit scary lesson about the importance of your family, this whole special lands the trick of being a huge treat.
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6/10
A Gonzo story? I'm listening ...
Mr-Fusion6 November 2021
Muppets Haunted Mansion: my wife's favorite IP and Disneyland ride blended together; she was happy as a clam throughout. And to an extent, I enjoyed this vicariously through her. I liked it; it's a decent holiday special, good message, it's got plenty of feels.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that this is all that Disney plans to do with the Muppets: advertise other Disney stuff. That vertical integration has already leeched onto The Simpsons (cross-breeding it with Star Wars and Marvel) and that's toxic for these characters.

It's not lost on me that I should be happy we're getting new Muppet content at all, but at what cost? There's a GEICO commercial that features Animal, and it's not bad; and this property absolutely needs more pop culture visibility. But it feels dirty if they're just pimping the Mouse's wares.

I hope I'm wrong.
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3/10
Painful.
Winter_Stardust8 October 2021
Disney really screwed the Muppets over with the newer voice actors. After firing Steve Whitmire, Gonzo is no longer paired with Rizzo but with Pepe the Prawn, and there's no chemistry between the characters. And thank goodness Kermit doesn't show up much, his voice actor is awful.

The songs aren't too bad, nice nods to the original Haunted Mansion song, too. The story is okay, it's nice that Gonzo is the main focus, and the cameos and guest stars are okay.

But overall it just feels like a cheap imitation of the Muppets. At the very least they could have gotten another voice actor closer to Whitmire's style and kept Rizzo.

Kids might like it for some family friendly fun, but for lifelong fans of the Muppets, it's a disappointment.
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10/10
Cute and funny!!
evanotten-350038 October 2021
Lots of great references to the ride while also adding fun new twists with the muppets.
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6/10
Should have used the real mansion.
philschafran25 August 2022
I was disappointed when I learned they were not going to capitalise on the fact that the parks were closed due to Covid, which would have been the perfect opportunity to film inside of the actual mansion at Disneyland. I was hoping for more of a backstage feel of the actual attraction featuring the muppets.
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4/10
Pretty bland
Blazehgehg12 April 2022
It's nice to see Disney doing more with the Muppets, and there are a lot of Muppets in this special. Unfortunately, if you're expecting anything more than that, you might end up disappointed, as this special is pretty bland.

This is basically "Gonzo and Pepe walk through The Haunted Mansion Ride and Sometimes There's a Random Celebrity Cameo." There's not much of a plot to follow, and mostly it's an excuse to deliver corny Muppet jokes. Cornier than usual, too; a lot of the humor in this feels a little "off" compared to Classic Muppets material.

For example: the opening of the special establishes that most of The Muppets are at Kermit's Halloween party, and we see them having fun in their costumes. Except that all those Muppets ALSO pull double duty and simultaneously play different characters in The Haunted Mansion itself. It's confusing.

That's on top of cheap effects. All the lighting is flat, the sets are all simple green screen CGI effects, and generally the whole thing looks super low budget. It looks worse than a lot of TV shows.

Kids probably won't mind, but The Muppets used to be a lot better than this, and a lot more grown up. This is a hollow imitation.
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10/10
2 Die 4
coderinos8 October 2021
Dun-dun-dun! Dun-dun!

Lifelong Muppet fan here and I have to say, I loved this special! I smiled the whole time and thought the jokes and the puns were great! You won't find any better family viewing fun this Halloween season, with this going in my must watch category for every Halloween to come! Thank you Disney+ and Muppets Studio!
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7/10
Both better and worse than I expected
ccssocks9 October 2021
Muppet Christmas Carol is my favourite movie of all time and I absolutely love the Muppets (and the Haunted Mansion is one of my favourite Disneyland rides) so I was both excited and nervous to watch this special.

I really enjoyed the first half -- the songs are fun and quite catchy, there are some pretty good moments and jokes (the goat's appearances made me laugh out loud) but the second half was really strange and creepy -- and not in a fun way. It definitely doesn't deliver the same level of pure joy as Muppet Christmas Carol but, to be fair, that is a high bar to meet.

Also, not enough Rizzo.

(I also miss Steve Whitmire's performances but sounds like they're better off without him, here's a paragraph from Wikipedia on his dismissal: "Brian Henson stated that issues with Whitmire began in the mid-1990s, and said that Whitmire would make "outrageous demands and often played brinkmanship", and additionally stated that Whitmire would "send emails and letters attacking everyone, attacking the writing and attacking the director". He also expressed guilt for not dismissing Whitmire and recasting Kermit before selling the Muppets to Disney in 2004, because "I knew that it was going to be a real problem". Lisa Henson stated that Whitmire was opposed to having an understudy for Kermit and refused to train one, which became problematic when it came to "B-level performances, such as a ribbon-cutting," at some of which she said he was unwilling to appear. She also stated that he "blackballed young performers" by refusing to appear in shows with them.")
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5/10
Just Meh.
olelmao19 October 2021
First thing I noticed was Kermit's voice. It wasn't like his normal one. I didn't really understand what was happening in this film, felt like there was no story. Bang average.
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Sharp, punchy, brilliant. It's The Muppets!
amesmonde10 October 2021
Believing they're going to a celebrity bash, Gonzo and Pepe The Prawn spend the night in a haunted mansion.

While it hasn't all the dynamics of a film, it excels as at TV movie, director Kirk Thatcher utilising some clever modern technology and virtual sets delivers a sterling production. This tonally line films from the past including Muppets Treasure Island and A Muppets Christmas Carol. It has all the the charm, fun and wit you'd expect from The Muppets. Those who love the Disneyland attraction of the same name will find this a blast with its surprises and Easter eggs all the way through.

Although Rizo the rat only appears in paintings (his character being retired due to some off screen issues), Pepe is a good stand-in/replacement having grown a fan favourite over the years. The performers, voice actors, crew, writers and Thatcher bring all Jim Henson favourites to life; from Kermit to Miss Piggy, Scooter to Rowlf the Dog as and everyone in-between. Even adding some genuinely likeable new ghost characters too.

Just like the original Muppet Show it delivers a real family experience. Will Arnett is great throughout as they encounter all kinds of Muppet-inspired ghouls, celebrity cameos including, Taraji P. Henson, Yvette Nicole Brown, Danny Trejo (who appeared in Muppets Most Wanted) and Ed Asner in one of his final roles.

The Muppet version of The Haunted Mansion thankfully delivers all The Muppet goodness we love. Sharp, punchy, brilliant. It's The Muppets!
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6/10
Only OK
fandomfatale28 October 2021
I was looking forward to watching this. I love the Muppets and I was excited for something Halloween-y. But this was very forgettable and not something I would watch again. I gave it a six for Pepe, my fave, who was featured prominently.

It felt like it tried too hard to have a message but I didn't feel any heartwarming. Kermit sounded nothing like Kermit, this voice actor needs to be recast.
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6/10
Quirky
theweb-854889 October 2021
Simply if you were brought up with the Muppets then it's always possible to watch them , just a shame more of the Muppets weren't involved.
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6/10
Dead Prawn Walking
nogodnomasters14 October 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Gonzo and Pepper (I'm not a shrimp) agree to stay in the haunted mansion of Magician MacGuffin who disappeared one hundred year ago. The rest of the Muppets appear as ghost characters in the mansion. That was pretty much it.

The film the typical bad puns but they were not as funny as I remembered. They were also missing the A-listers who all wanted to star next to the Muppets. Even some B-listers from horror films would have been nice. Who doesn't like the Muppets? This had so much potential and they opted to go cheap and rely on the Muppet name. Disney couldn't afford the rights to use "Thriller?" So we got "Dancin' in the Moonlight."
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2/10
Lazy
taustn14 October 2021
We have seriously lost something here and its truly sad. We've gone from seeing things like Kermit riding a bike (Which was an impressive feat of puppeteering) to having muppets whos mouths dont move at the time as the voice over and CGI flames on a candle stick. I found myself asking questions like, Where is Rizzo? Who is Pepper? (Its Pepe) and why doesnt Kermit sound anything like, well Kermit? I really don't think Jim Henson would have let this pass, There are far too many points where CGI is used instead of puppeteering. Over all this just feels lazy. If this is the future of the Muppets I am saddened to see something that really was special cheapened so much.
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8/10
What a DeFright!
thesar-222 October 2021
About time Pepe THE KING PRAWN got some justice!

I loved this hilarious, little special and kept thinking throughout: this would make a perfect double feature with The Muppet Christmas Carol. Yes, I know that is for Christmas and This is Halloween (I know) but it worked as one in The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Gonzo (who also starred in/narrated TMCC) and Pepe are going to party with the peoples, but since it takes place in a replica of Disney's scary mansion, they might not make it out alive! There's always room for two more...

The songs were good and the humor perfect for the whole family. I loved how G-rated they basically made this so both kids and adults can enjoy and also love the extended role for my favorite Muppet of all time: Pepe.

Highly recommended and I think I will indeed watch it with TMCC in Dec.

***

Final Thoughts: Please, don't ask me to compare this to the Eddie Murphy version. Never cared to see that and still don't have a desire. This will do just fine.
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7/10
CGI killed it! (Again)
justiceme-4346210 October 2021
Overall enjoyable.

Two criticisms: 1. Too much CGI!! Totally killed the usual Muppet charm.

2. A bit too meta.
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2/10
Disappointing
ncfjyyjt9 October 2021
I was really looking forward to this....but I have to say I was so incredibly bored. The writing was predictable, which is to be expected with The Muppets, but it was lacking the charm that usually makes that okay. There were a lot of celebrity cameos, but they weren't even that interesting. Honestly, I was most excited to see Pat Sajak, just because it was so random and woke me up for a second. I always enjoy Will Arnett, but it felt like they thought the humor you get from his Will Arnettness would be enough to carry this special. It just felt tired.

The absolute worst part was Kermit's voice! I really couldn't get over it. Sooo many people can do a better Kermit. I don't even know how they make a muppet movie thinking that a bad impression is okay. Seriously, the next time you do this, hold a YouTube contest or something to find a new Kermit. I guarantee you can do better.
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8/10
Best Muppets in years
gizmomogwai17 October 2021
A Halloween treat from Disney Plus, Muppets Haunted Mansion comes off better than their current Muppets Now, which got off on a slow start. The hour-long special is based on both the Muppets and Disney's Haunted Mansion ride (which already got a movie in 2003, though not seen by many and now forgotten). Although this sounds like a cynical move, the spooky fun played off against the Muppets' irreverence and sarcasm play off on each other nicely. And, I'm glad the Great Gonzo was made the star, as he is my favourite secondary Muppet, better than Fozzie. What's missing is, of course, Rizzo, who is Gonzo's natural sidekick.

Muppets Haunted Mansion goes over nicely with enjoyable musical numbers and visuals, including the ghostly puppetry. Arrested Development's Will Arnett is a welcome addition to the Muppets franchise and works well. The usual meta humour is here.

Matt Vogel still needs to work on his Kermit, unfortunately. And, we need Rizzo back. Steve Whitmire's departure from the franchise has hurt, and I'm still hoping Vogel can pull this together. In the meantime, it's good to keep the Muppets franchise alive - or undead, in this case.
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6/10
Great family Halloween fun...
paul_haakonsen9 October 2021
I haven't seen anything with the Muppets in ages, so when I stumbled upon this 2021 TV special titled "Muppets Haunted Mansion", I just had to sit down and watch it. Especially given the title and the theme of the special.

Yeah Disney definitely delivered a wholesome Muppets movie for the entire family here. As if there ever was any doubt about it. I mean, this being a Disney production and being The Muppets. So that was a win-win right there.

The storyline told in "Muppets Haunted Mansion" was enjoyable, and it was a story that offered something to both me and my son, so there is something for all ages here, both kids and adults alike. And I will say that "Muppets Haunted Mansion" makes for a great family movie suitable for viewing around the time of Halloween.

Visually then "Muppets Haunted Mansion" is great. Lots of nice details and even have some funny nods to other scary movies throughout the course of the story.

The setting of "Muppets Haunted Mansion" was great, as was the props and scenes. Lots of great details and nice touches to be found and see, especially if you are a fan of the Muppets.

The voice acting was good, as it usually is with these types of productions. And they also had a good ensemble of actual actors and actresses live in the movie - no pun intended.

My rating of "Muppets Haunted Mansion" lands on a well-deserved six out of ten stars.
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5/10
Loved most of it but Matt Vogel is not it.
deadshyguy8 October 2021
Matt Vogel might actually be the worst thing to happen to Kermit the Frog. Jacksfilms on Youtube does a better Kermit voice and he did it as a parody 🙄, Disney really isn't listening and neither is Jim Henson's son who clearly has have no respect for Henson's legacy.
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Just about ok
randomhooves30 October 2021
This was the muppets, the jokes were passable, it seemed a bit like an extended, dramatised ride through the Disney Haunted mansion, which is fair enough, but what on earth has happened to Kermit's voice? Who ok'ed that? #NotmyKermit.
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