The Mansion (org. title Le Manoir) is a new horror-comedy on Netflix. It’s a French production with potential, but the end result feels lazy!

The Mansion is out on Netflix now and since it’s listed as a horror-comedy, I was pretty excited to see it. I mean, not only do I love horror-comedies, I’ve also watched enough French horror movies to know that they can really deliver.

A movie like The Night Eats the World was absolutely brilliant and that’s just the latest French horror movie, I’ve watched. And on Netflix, there are several thriller series that deliver on entertainment. Even if the stories didn’t always work perfectly for me. Check out both The Mantis and The Forest on Netflix.

Unfortunately, The Mansion (with the original title Le Manoir) didn’t really work for me on any level.

Almost a spoof

My main problem with The Mansion is probably that it felt almost like a spoof. But then again, not enough for it to actually be one. And instead of delivering on comedy, I felt it was mostly lazy and cheap shots at being funny.

You can probably guess many jokes and plot twists up front because it all feels so familiar. Sure, there are elements that are actually funny, but far too few for a horror-comedy.

I rolled my eyes a lot more than I laughed.

Also, the horror elements just seemed like stereotypes of elements I’ve seen so many times. Again, sure, there are some elements that work, but come on, this is supposed to be a new movie. Not just something that feels like a light version of another semi-decent movie.

The Mansion – Le Manoir – Horror Comedy on Netflix

Annoying characters

More than an annoying story, The Mansion suffers from having bad characters.  I didn’t really like any of them, and since I didn’t like them, I didn’t really care what they did. Or if they died.

The result of feeling this way is that it becomes increasingly difficult to not let your mind wander.

I don’t know any of the actors particularly well, so I have no idea if they did a good job. They certainly didn’t manage to create characters, I cared about. But then again, that’s probably more due to the writing than the actors.

Music video director

The Mansion is the feature film directing debut for Tony T. Datis. He’s done a short film and three music videoes in the past – including “Video Awake” for Katy Perry.

And this actually makes sense, because it feels like The Mansion might be made directly for the music video audience. Probably the exact same demographic as a Katy Perry music video. It’s entirely possible that others will love The Mansion so do check it out and hopefully, you’ll enjoy it.

Hey, maybe you’ll even find it funny – I did too, but only at very few and short moments.

The Manson is out on Netflix in most countries now!

Details

Director: Tony T. Datis
Cast: Marc Jarousseau, Nathalie Odzierejko, Ludovik Day, Vanessa Guide, Delphine Baril

Plot

A band of students comes to celebrate the New Year in an old manor house isolated from everything. But soon after their arrival, strange events disrupt the atmosphere, before the party turns squarely to the nightmare.

I write reviews and recaps on Heaven of Horror. And yes, it does happen that I find myself screaming, when watching a good horror movie. I love psychological horror, survival horror and kick-ass women. Also, I have a huge soft spot for a good horror-comedy. Oh yeah, and I absolutely HATE when animals are harmed in movies, so I will immediately think less of any movie, where animals are harmed for entertainment (even if the animals are just really good actors). Fortunately, horror doesn't use this nearly as much as comedy. And people assume horror lovers are the messed up ones. Go figure!
Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard
Latest posts by Karina "ScreamQueen" Adelgaard (see all)