The Haunted House Review

The Haunted House is a 1929 Mickey Mouse cartoon. It is such an atmospheric entry.

This is the first ever Mickey Mouse horror film and it honestly works which was unexpected. It is a stupendously atmospheric, genuinely creepy movie that should undoubtedly prove scary for children. The first half is so good as Mickey visits this haunted house which looks beautiful and meticulously detailed. The skeletons themselves are nothing special, but the hooded skeleton is quite creepy, menacing and ultimately highly memorable.

The film definitely was ruined by again overwhelming dance sequences. The hooded figure makes Mickey play the piano and he and the skeletons dance to it. There were some good gags there, but most of it were typical early series’ dance routines. That was dull and the ending was good, but not great. But the score is very good and the animation is simply outstanding with a great use of lighting and black and white color that it ultimately succeeds.

The Haunted House has a typical dance second half, but the first one is a genuine horror flick with a palpable atmosphere and absolutely outstanding animation.