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Walking through the packed parking lot on a cool October night, we heard excited haunt goers discussing the terror they experienced within the walls of Malice Manor. One exclaimed to a friend, “Thank you for walking in front of me, I was so scared”, as they both laughed nervously, latching onto one another; beyond the haunt, which is a firm sign of ghoulishly “good” frights to come! This added to our anticipation toward what Lord Rancor and his staff would have in store for us this spooky season.
Those dwelling within the manor delivered every bit of anguish and horror we were longing for. Unforeseeable scares, ghastly creatures lurking below and above us, grisly scenes of victims who looked like they had been cook– I mean, staying there for some time, before we arrived. (Some long before we arrived…) The threats literally had us wondering if we would make it out of the haunt ourselves, and oftentimes it felt like we would be residing among the haunting souls within the ominous walls of Malice Manor. We, however, lived to tell the tale and encourage you, if you dare, to take a chance and experience the thrills and chills of a place many tortured souls call home. The “pent-up” and electric energy at Malice Manor is one to experience, and we hope that you do!
Our host, as we entered the opening parlor, Ambrose, greeted us cordially while we took a seat on the couch. They gave us a little insight as to what Lord Rancor’s been up to that may have caused so much darkness to befall his home… unfortunately, it seemed our dear host wasn’t immune to it either; their behavior became increasingly unhinged before they finally sent us into the rest of the house. Not long afterward, we were accosted (literally) by another disturbed member of the household, who assured us not to mind Ambrose because they “didn’t know what they were talking about” and cheerily commented on how she’d like to hollow out our insides to store more of the Manor’s relics! Picking our way through slanted, messy bookshelves in the library, we were quickly discovered by the Lord of the Manor himself – a booming “YOU!” from above alerted us to his watchful, glaring eyes! Uh oh… busted!
Swiping aside hanging clothes, we eventually met the mansion’s tailor – upside-down and walking on all fours like a crab. “Um… are you okay?” we queried, to which we swiftly found out they were NOT as they caught hold of us, no doubt looking to fashion some new clothes! Needless to say, we wisely chose to get out of there. Descending into a witch’s secret underground lair, we found her babbling in a mysterious language, then marking our faces with black ash before shrieking that our “blessings”- a.k.a blood and bones- would bring “them” back to her. “Your souls will be mine!” she screamed from afar as we fled. A disturbed soul in a black dress with an incredibly creepy face, pale with hollowed eyes and a dark, jagged smile, played the piano while screeching and groaning at us. Many other possessed staff and twisted creatures hunted and stalked us through the Manor, some even going so far as to emerge from the walls around us! Among the more persistent was a creature with an opossum’s face replacing their own – they seemed to find us multiple times.
Empty rooms were kept to a minimum. Some of those had animated effects to provide scares and keep the tension going, and the ones that could’ve used a cast member in them, or more of them, were few. Most of the dialogue we heard and the mannerisms we witnessed were appropriate for each character.
The Devil is in the details, and quite literally inside Malice Manor! Lord Rancor is decked out as head of his “humble” abode, ready to host, in all black attire and a sleek red tie. Actors were wildly appropriate in bloody, dirty, and distressed clothing and hair. After all, they have dwelled within these walls from the time when Rancor and his family were still human.
There is a wide variety of costuming within the haunt. We saw a girl in polka-dotted PJs to match her childlike surroundings, a heart-stoppingly creepy marionette-like character, a poisonous serving crow in fancy red attire, a dirty pig in an apron, and a human-sized hairy possum wrapped in rabies, among many roaming within the freakishly dark walls.
We were greatly impressed with the fine makeup details on actors, airbrushed and otherwise, the hideous prosthetics, appallingly fantastic masks, “fine” dental work, and monstrous contact lenses… all adding to the shock factor. Some had a bit more detail than others, but all of them looked solid. Forcefully gazing into incredibly nightmarish eyes, for instance- as we were threatened and blocked from moving forward- added to our fear immensely. The looks at Malice Manor will continue to haunt us!
Malice Manor wasn’t too hard to find. Their sign was lit up with different flashing colors above the front door and we could see it from the street. Parking was free – they had a few spaces out front, or arriving customers could park in one of the nearby lots. If possible, we’d love to see more decor added out front to hint that a haunted house is there. A lit-up sign out front reading “Haunted House” or one a little further down the street, pointing in Malice’s direction, may help too.
Once we were inside, the ticket booth was immediately to our right and marked with a brightly lit sign. Ticket prices were $25.00 for General Admission or $40.00 for Fast Pass access. The queues for each type of ticket were clearly labeled with arrows guiding groups on which direction to go. Everyone we interacted with at the haunt was pleasant and helpful. The Manor’s website had all of the basics covered, along with some media giving prospective customers a glimpse into their show. We did feel it could use an FAQ section with answers to common questions like touch policy, handicap accessibility, weather policy, etc.
IMPORTANT: Something you need to know before visiting Malice Manor is that it is a LIGHT CONTACT attraction. No one will do anything super crazy, like take you away from your group or pick you up, but a brief grab or some gentle grasping/grazing of limbs, hair, and whatnot may occur as you’re going through. There’s also a chance you might get wet!
From the very moment we entered the doors to the haunt, there was the ominous glow and distinctly alluring scent, letting us know we had arrived inside Malice Manor. With sickeningly energetic beats in the background, Lord Rancor, his family, and staff know how to entertain and…hold the attention of his guests. Among the props were giant skeletons, gargoyles, and a giant spider who may have popped out- literally- to catch a photo op with, and they all set the tone. There was also a throne in the entryway that guests could sit in, as well as an additional photo op.
Along the eerily detailed path to the haunt itself, a projected scary movie played on the wall for the crowd’s enjoyment. If you are really…lucky…Lord Rancor will appear above during your wait to…check in. This is a great environment to add to the adrenaline for what’s to come. We caught a glimpse of him ourselves as we waited in line, and his glare sent chills through us. Getting to play with the props, once we presented our tickets, added another layer of immersion. They had all kinds of scary items to threaten one another on our team as we took our group photo. That fun feeling turned to dread as we were guided to the pitch-dark area of the front door entryway to the haunt, and the door slowly creaked open…
The haunt was decorated beautifully, with light, decor, and haunting art of all kinds at every turn. Keep an open mind with the pieces, it could also be like the dark art version of Amsterdam when it comes to the exotic pieces you may see! Malice Manor will take you into another world of imagination, adventure, and hair-raising sounds. Ambrose greeted us with a bit of background on the haunt, then whisked us away into another area through an interesting transitional method that led to a library, which was a bit of an up-and-down experience on its own. There were displays of all sorts throughout the journey, including a piano room, a dark maze, a fountain garden, and even a dock where a (long deceased) mermaid resided. If we got thirsty, one of the monsters might’ve had something to quench our thirst. Be prepared to go low, go through various cycles, and have the wits scared out of you at all times!
Luckily for us, we managed to escape the haunt… but it didn’t quite end there. Creatures and other actors were finding us outside, too…and they were not happy we had made it out!
Malice’s crew works hard on their haunt all year long to bring the story of the ill-fated Rancor family to life, and it definitely showed in the level of detail applied to each scene and the SFX used. From the vast number of props, tailored accordingly to every room, to the layers of textures on the walls and even the ceiling at times, care was taken to build the attraction in a way that would immerse customers as they walked through. Several animatronics were positioned throughout the house, and most of them were positioned for scares: dropping from above, bursting through a wall, leaping at guests. Some other effects we saw included at least one animated portrait, a vibrating bridge that nearly rattled our teeth, bubbles, and light effects that simulated water and fire. In the second kitchen scene, they actually had an effect to make it seem like a pot of food was burning on the stove – complete with “smoke” (fog) rising up!
A detail we really liked, and one that was sort of on the subtle side, was the transition from when we first entered Lord Rancor’s mansion to plunging right into its haunted halls. The first thing we saw was a painting of him and his wife as normal people, before the curse took over… however, once we left the living room, we were immediately faced with one of him and his wife transformed into their new monster forms. Where the first painting was straight and neat, the second one was crooked, all of the accompanying framed photos on the walls were also crooked, and there were rips and gouges in the wallpaper! It was very cool.
21. How scary was it? (35% of score): 8.75
22. How well did they provide scares to everyone in the group? (15% of score): 9
23. How predictable were the scares? (25% of score): 8.85
24. How well did they provide a wide variety (types) of scares? (10% of score): 8.5
25. How strong was the ending / finale? (15% of score): 7.83
As if standing in the dark waiting on the door to slowly creak open wasn’t frightening enough, waiting until we experienced the pent-up energy of the actors within Malice Manor brought our heart rates up. They had been holding back a good portion of that energy since their human days, it seemed, and this was the time of year for them to unleash it!
Ambrose was crawling all around us on the furniture and we were being grabbed by other actors from every direction, including the floor and from the walls; blocked in the disorienting library while being threatened – and that was only the beginning. Lord Rancor found us from above, and quickly made it known that we were not on his invite list, seeming to stare right through us with those sharp blue eyes. We scurried the best we could through the darkness and evil, while the actors caught up with us from every angle. Masters of disguise and appearing from nowhere, we knew we were being watched, they were waiting on us, and our group would have to face their wrath.
Animatronics would startle us with sudden glowing and cackling effects, or jump out when we would least expect it. These were well-placed for scares. Air blasts, strong vibrating floors, a blacked-out maze, and the constant change of scenery along the way added to the fear of what would be next. A wild butcher-style pig was looking to cook…one of us, and a human-sized possum appeared everywhere, including on the ceiling and outside after we exited the haunt. Actors appeared to be eating disemboweled parts, we found a suspicious “white room” that may have been heavily haunted, and got an unimaginable fright from a very freakish monster in the piano room. A great deal of screaming, jumping, swearing, and “what the hell is THAT?!” came out of our mouths throughout our adventure. Scare factor: check, check, and CHECK!
Malice Manor may officially mic drop: we were toasted, and if the “cooks” within the haunt had their way…literally roasted!
The Manor’s minions and monsters were loath to see us go, but we had no intention of becoming the newest additions to Lord Rancor’s collection! We escaped Malice Manor in approximately 12 minutes, with a base ticket price of $25.00, which brought their MPD (Minutes Per Dollar) rating to 0.48. While that’s on the short side in comparison to the cost of admission, we were highly satisfied with the show we received. There were plenty of actors and special effects to scare us around every turn, the environment was immersive, and our tickets came with some extra entertainment too: decor and photo opportunities in the lobby, fun music, a projected movie, and random character appearances in the queue. For those with some extra cash, the haunt had a merch counter, and there were vendors outside selling jewelry, cold drinks, and cinnamon rolls.
Lord Rancor’s love for the strange and unusual eventually came back to bite him, causing a terrible darkness to consume his home and transform everyone in it into murderous maniacs and nightmarish creatures. Will the darkness sink its claws into you next, trapping you within its walls forever? Enter Malice Manor this haunt season at your own risk.
640 Providence Way, Clarksville, Indiana 47129
