Fright Manor – Full Review

Fright Manor is a Haunted Attraction located in Indianapolis, IN.

350 Anniston Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46227
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Haunt Type(s):

Links:

Contact:

Features:

Free Parking, Restrooms/Porta Potties On-Site, Food/Concessions, Gift Shop/Souvenirs, “Old-School” (Low Tech), You will NOT be touched, Movie Characters, Original Characters, Uncovered Outdoor Waiting Line, Indoor/Outdoor Attraction, Family Friendly

This attraction was reviewed on October 9, 2021 by Team Big Spooky.

Final Scores:

(15% of Final Score) Cast: 8.13

(15% of Final Score) Costuming: 7.76

(10% of Final Score) Customer Service: 9.67

(10% of Final Score) Atmosphere: 7.8

(15% of Final Score) Special Effects: 8.26

(5% of Final Score) Theme: 6.9

(15% of Final Score) Scare Factor: 8.58

(5% of Final Score) Entertainment & Value: 7.93

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As a local fundraiser for the little league since 1982, Fright Manor puts on a hauntingly good show for the 39th straight year!

Fright Manor is known for its ‘old-school’ style, showcasing several well-known characters from your favorite horror movies, classic fears such as claustrophobia, and quick humor that is sure to keep you on your toes. This year Fright Manor showcases three different themes throughout the attraction: Murderer’s Revenge, Terror in the Woods, and Hell Bound. If you can complete all of these successfully, you may be in luck and find yourself back into the real world. Beware of the monsters lurking within, though. Some seem as though they’re running through the walls and will be with you at every turn’

If you dare walk through the horrors before you, they’ll open the doors and welcome you into the Manor themselves. Who knows if you’ll be able to escape their grasps at Fright Manor.

Cast Scores (15% of Final Score):

(20% of Cast Score) Did it seem like there were enough actors?: 8.25

(30% of Cast Score) How creative, believable and convincing were the actors?: 8.25

(20% of Cast Score) How interactive were the actors (verbally and physically)?: 8

(15% of Cast Score) How creatively & appropriately did they use dialogue?: 8

(15% of Cast Score) Was there a good variety of characters?: 8

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Here at Fright Manor, you’re sure to see some familiar faces. Although there seemed to be a sweet grandmother outside offering to bake cookies with you, there were several characters from classic horror films scattered within the premises who were up to less good. Michael Myers stalked us throughout several rooms, creeping up behind a member of our group without him even realizing! Jason Vorhees felt like he jumped out of the wall causing a huge scare. Several people mentioned that Freddy Kreuger was a major attraction, however, our group didn’t get a chance to see him.

It seemed as though Fright Manor had a bad reputation for marriages, though. We heard multiple people tell us they had murdered their respective spouses. A husband had been buried in the courtyard and a gentleman was kind enough to bury his nomadic wife in 3 different states (at least he said she’d be happy about that…)

Costuming Scores (15% of Final Score):

(15% of Costuming Score) How complete / finished did the costumes appear to be?: 8.25

(25% of Costuming Score) How creative / detailed were the costumes?: 7.5

(20% of Costuming Score) Was their makeup creative? Detailed? Realistic?: 7.25

(15% of Costuming Score) How effectively did they use masks (if used)?: 8

(25% of Costuming Score) How appropriate were the costumes for their scene/s & theme/s?: 8

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All of the cast of Fright Manor gives you a classic Halloween feel. There were several characters that were well known, mostly wearing solid-colored jumpsuits with some layering underneath. The idea that they were serial killers was very apparent in their grungy makeup and the various weapons they wielded. Several classic serial killers were depicted within the depth of the attraction including cameos from both Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees. There was a great use of lighting and some glow-in-the-dark features in a black hallway that were used very well.

Shredder followed us through a couple of rooms donning a leather mask that we enjoyed very much. And there were two identical clowns at the end of the show that had terrifying smiles that showed just how happy they were to chase you through the final outdoor section.

There were a few makeups that seemed like an average Halloween enthusiast could create, such as the witch in the courtyard, but achieving the granny look that was donned by our favorite grandmother was a much more intricate style that had us looking a little bit closer.

Customer Service Scores (10% of Final Score):

(25% of CS Score) How easy was it to locate the attraction, park, and navigate the premises?: 9.5

(30% of CS Score) How safe was the attraction?: 9.5

(25% of CS Score) How professional, helpful and friendly were the staff members?: 10

(20% of CS Score) How easy was it to find their information before* arrival?: 9.7

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My handy dandy GPS took me right to Fright Manor. We turned into a local ball field that had attendants telling us where to park. They offer free parking in their gravel parking lot. It was apparent where to go once we left our vehicle thanks to the large banner and string lights lighting the path to the ticket booth.

They also had several hand-painted signs around the area that pointed in different directions based on where you wanted to go first. There was a large sign that showed where to go find your tickets, which is located in a well-lit concession stand.

Fright Manor is family-owned and operated and everyone that we encountered was very friendly and willing to help. They answered any questions that we had, as this was our group’s first time attending and you could see their excitement about the attraction on their faces.

Atmosphere Scores (10% of Final Score):

(60% of Atmosphere Score) How obvious was it that you were at a haunted house before entering?: 8

(40% of Atmosphere Score) How well did the atmosphere prepare you for what you experienced inside?: 7.5

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Although arriving at this attraction was a very different experience than any our group has had before, you could tell that they were doing their best with their circumstances. They build the whole haunted house attraction in the middle of a ball field and rebuild it each year. So although it was a little harder to know that it was a haunted house when we arrived, the large banner and string lights leading up the path helped tremendously. They had a few large painted murals filled with spooky creatures and a large coffin that showed that some people were just dying to get in there’ pun intended.

Other than the signs and banners, we could hear several screams coming from the attraction, especially toward the ending which is located right next to the ticket booth. You could see firsthand the looks of fear and exhaustion from the victims in front of you and see what you’re about to be put through shortly! We also heard some banging at the walls and the telltale sounds of chainsaws.

Special Effects Scores (15% of Final Score):

(20% of SFX Score) How effective were the sound effects?: 7.25

(20% of SFX Score) How creative / original were the scenes & props?: 8

(20% of SFX Score) How well were the scenes detailed?: 8.5

(25% of SFX Score) How well did they achieve & maintain the suspension of disbelief?: 9.25

(15% of SFX Score) How effective were the SFX at providing scares / entertainment?: 8

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Despite the fact that Fright Manor breaks down and puts up their entire production each year, they jampack a TON of detail throughout the entire haunted house. There are several features that some might say are classic and simple, yet they are very effective. There are a couple of claustrophobia hallways that were utilized that made you feel like you literally had to push yourself through the haunted attraction. They also had a crawl tunnel where we literally had to get down on our hands and knees to get into the next scene. In addition to the crawl tunnel, there was another room that closed in on us and we had to crabwalk to escape. We especially liked the utilization of what felt like a wobbly bridge that we had to walk over.

In addition to the surroundings that closed in on us in various ways, they had great use of lighting. With the lighting, they incorporated a glow-in-the-dark room. Inside the pitch-black room, there were several masks that were able to glow bright green. We won’t tell you where, but lurking in those shadows behind one of the masks is a very alive serial killer. It seemed as though they literally jumped off the wall and began to chase us. They were also able to incorporate a glowing green light and some fog to create the illusion of a swamp, and several of their props seemed to come alive. In one of the bathrooms, we wished we had worn a raincoat and a character even placed a wet, bleeding heart in one of our hands!

Theme Scores (5% of Final Score):

(30% of Theme Score) Could you tell what the theme was?: 7.25

(50% of Theme Score) How well was the theme carried throughout the attraction/s?: 6.75

(20% of Theme Score) How well does their location authenticate the theme?: 6.75

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The attraction itself is accessible through a single walkthrough and only utilized one queue line. However, inside of the attraction, they break it up into three different sections: Murderer’s Revenge, Terror in the Woods, and Hell Bound. They have brief summaries of each of these themes listed on their website so someone can get a bit of history on what they’ll see inside.

Murderer’s Revenge was the only theme that was actually described to us in detail at the beginning of the haunt. An older gentleman went on to tell us about all of the serial killers that were inside waiting for us, angry, and even went on to tell us about his killing spree that he had of his multiple ex-wives. It seemed as though this theme was carried throughout all three attractions. We encountered someone later on who said that they had killed their husband and buried him in the courtyard we had to walk through as well.

We assume there was some signage on the walls that were supposed to give you clues that we had entered another section. Our group, in particular, missed the transition between Murderer’s Revenge and Terror in the Woods. These two seemed to blend together seamlessly. However, closer to the end of the attraction, when we started interacting with a scene from an exorcism and the killer clowns, we could tell much more that this was the Hell that they spoke of.

Scare Factor Scores (15% of Final Score):

(30% of Scare Factor Score) How scary was it?: 8.25

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How well did they provide scares to the entire group?: 9

(25% of Scare Factor Score) How predictable were the scares?: 8.5

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How well did they provide a wide variety of scares?: 8.25

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How strong was the ending / finale?: 9.25

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There were several loud noises, excited and murderous cast members, claustrophobia (which is one of our group’s greatest fears), several whirring weapons, and pitch-black darkness that were all used together to create a cohesive and frightening show. There were plenty of actors in each room and they all knew how to give a great, traditional scare.

Several of the serial killers wielded power tools. Although an object that you see often at home, when one is being shoved near your head you run– and you run fast! There was a specific creature that we encountered a couple of times that had two small knives. Although not very talkative, when they held up the two knives to their throat and gave slashing movements, you knew exactly what their intentions were with you.

It seemed as though everyone knew the scenes very well. When we began to leave a scene, it seemed like once the character was out of sight, they somehow jumped right back into our line of vision in front of us! This had us constantly looking behind us. Michael Myers, for example, followed us through several scenes, stealthily stalking us like his prey in the night. One of our group members was especially creeped out by his slow and steady approach.

There were only two of us in the group, but we were very satisfied with the level of scares coming from all angles and especially appreciated the different approaches they took with us. While one of us got frightened and splashed with water, the other was chased and cornered while blindly running through the clown maze!

Entertainment & Value Factor Scores (15% of Final Score):

(30% of E&V Score) How satisfied were you with the entertainment received during the main attraction/s?: 8

(25% of E&V Score) How satisfied were you with the entertainment that’s available with* the ticket price, excluding the main attraction/s?: 7.25

(30% of E&V Score) How appropriate is/are the ticket price/s?: 8.5

(15% of E&V Score) Have they effectively used their available space?: 7.8

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When our group came to Fright Manor, General Admission tickets were available for $22.00. They also offer Speedpasses to have access to a shorter wait time for $32.00. They have a couple of other discounts available including one for FFA members to reduce their ticket cost down to $12.00 and a witch was even offering us a cash discount! We’re not sure what magic tricks she used to pull off that deal, but anyone can appreciate a great deal.

From beginning to end, we clocked our time within the haunted house at 15.4 minutes. This brings our MPD (Minutes per dollar) rate to 0.7! Although a little lower than the average that we’re used to seeing, each minute inside the attraction is jampacked full of excitement that will keep your group on their toes throughout and have you screaming quite a few times.

Outside of their attraction, they had several photo opportunities set up including a kissing booth scene, a casket and attendant scene, and even had a midway with games available for an extra cost.

While we waited our turn to enter Fright Manor, we encountered a few characters who came in and out of the attraction as we went through as well. The most memorable, of course, was a little old lady who offered to be our grandmother and bake us cookies! When inside of the haunted house, she didn’t seem quite so sweet, though’

Fright Manor has to tear down their whole attraction at the end of the season and they begin to rebuild it at the beginning of August. In just a short period of build time before they’re able to invite guests inside, they accomplish a huge feat and put on a great show! Not to mention that the proceeds go to support the Southport Little League. So come on out for a new show each year, pee your pants a little (I know we did) and support the local community!

How Did We Get These Scores

Promo Images:

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Guest Reviews
Guest Average: 10 out of 10

Andrea Cox – 10/10 – October 23, 2015
Best, scariest, fun, shocking.

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Past Awards

2018 Awards

Memorable Moment - Rodney McDonald (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out - Freddy Krueger - Justin Danz (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out - Grinder - Jason Baker (Given by: Team Zombillies)

2017 Awards

Scariest Old-School Effects (Given by: Team Zombillies)

2016 Awards

Scariest Old-School Effects (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out Award - "Damien the Clown" A.K.A Aaron Mason (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out Award - "Freddy Krueger" A.K.A Justin Danz (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out Award - "Grinder" A.K.A Jason Baker (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out Award - "Lust Lady" A.K.A Charity Brewer (Given by: Team Zombillies)

Actor Shout Out Award - "Torture Girl" A.K.A Kayelynn Woodlock (Given by: Team Zombillies)