At one time, I was actually a little afraid to watch this PG animation, because I worried about the poor dog from the trailer. Then I looked up a synopsis, confirmed the dog's lack of injury (necessary for the PG rating, it turns out)...and worried that I now knew too much to enjoy watching. Fortunately, I had forgotten most of what I read, or else I'd skimmed more than I realized.
In '80s suburban Wisconsin, 12-year-old outcast D.J. (Mitchel Musso) obsessively spies on the decrepit house across the street, where cranky old recluse Horace Nebbercracker (Steve Buscemi), the subject of uxoricide rumors, scares away any kid who drops something on his yard. When Nebbercracker has a heart attack right before Halloween, the house continues to show signs of activity -- and not just the kind you expect with living inhabitants. People and animals who come too close tend to get swallowed up. With no authorities believing in a threat, D.J. teams up with friend "Chowder" (Sam Lerner) and newly acquainted candy salesgirl Jenny (Spencer Locke) to try to end the haunting with their own ingenuity.
We have a pretty tight focus here, tho not as claustrophobic as in my previous viewing. Most of the action takes place at D.J.'s house, the titular property, or a nearby construction site. There aren't many voiced characters. Somewhat notable ones include D.J.'s parents (Catherine O'Hara and Fred Willard), his sitter (Maggie Gyllenhaal), her semi-boyfriend (Jason Lee), the only two cops available (Kevin James and Nick Cannon), and a hardcore gamer (Jon Heder, sticking with geek roles). Apart from the last one, these adults are unusually obnoxious to our heroes, helping to cement a focus on a young audience.
Comedy comes primarily in the form of exaggerated personalities bouncing off each other. No one is a mere foil; even Jenny has a dash of eccentricity. D.J. and Chowder, on the cusp of puberty, are both instantly smitten and try to impress her, which drives a number of their braver actions. Less charitable critics have compared the trio to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but their dynamic was never like that. I'm more concerned about a few vulgar gags.
More interesting than any of the humans is the haunted house. It's not what you picture when you encounter those two words together; it seems to be alive in itself, with the walkway, the lawn, and even the nearby trees bending to its will. Some complain that its behavior is inconsistent; I think it's just smart enough to lay low until confident that any new witnesses are in reach.
The results, while a tad ridiculous, are genuinely scary, getting more so as the climax approaches. Things are not just eerie like in Coraline; the danger feels quite imminent. I understand that it owes something to several Stephen King works. It's also colorful. I like to think the artists had fun devising how to make a house into an organism.
I'm not surprised that a movie with Robert Zemeckis among the executive producers had cutting-edge graphics for the time. The motion-captured CG characters manage to look relatively realistic without veering into the uncanny valley like in The Polar Express. Then again, would it be so bad if they did? As for co-executive producer Steven Spielberg (reuniting with Zemeckis after 16 years), well, he does have a way with kid stuff and tension buildup. You might detect a slight Goonies flavor, but I liked that flick a lot less.
I almost added a "politically incorrect" tag, because Mrs. Nebbercracker was an extraordinarily obese woman in a freak show. On further reflection, her size doesn't seem to be played for laughs or scares. If it has any plot importance, it's in how badly she was treated in life, putting her husband into perspective. This leads to the only moral I can read into the story: Don't assume the worst about unfriendly neighbors if you don't know where they're coming from. In a pic full of jerks, it's nice to find something heartwarming, if less broadly applicable than in ParaNorman.
In a year with lots of possibilities, the Academy was probably right to nominate MH for Best Animated Feature but not award it. It's not smart enough to be effective at all times, and younger kids had best steer clear. But it earned its profit.
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