The supposedly haunted “Mad Hatter Mansion” proves to be just that when a psychology professor and four student volunteers spend a weekend in its sinister walls. Years ago some drugged libations led an orgy to an accidental fire which in turn wiped out a swinging masquerade party in the mansion. The owner, a world famous hat maker, was well-known for his debauchery and when he perished with his guests and daughter it supposedly left a supernatural imprint on the place. This bit of folklore has the professor, whose interest lies in the effect of paranormal implications on human behavior, excited to study his students over the weekend. One of those students (Henry, if you must know) seems to have a deeper connection to the place but it may have to do with the mutual loss of a young girl. Past trauma seems to haunt everyone just as much as the resident specters and as the weekend crawls on, the mental wellness of the group deteriorates. There’s some sinister shenanigans afoot and the group of likable youngsters are caught in the midst of something well beyond their understanding. Teeth fall out, nails rip, a raccoon gets skinned, secret passageways get uncovered and the fiery spirits of the dead pop up to cause something lighter than jump scares. It builds upon a foundation of The Haunting and Hell House but wanders off into an overly dramatic area of tedium. The villain is pretty cool looking but similar to the entities of the far superior We Are Still Here, and the characters are way less annoying than usual. Michael Berryman stares on as the mute caretaker and tea is slurped in a sinister fashion. It’s... not great.
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