The Haunted Mansion of Melville Review (2016)

Moderate ScaresModerate Scares
Final Score: 7.23/10

Quick Facts

Moderate ScaresModerate Scares
Runtime25 Minutes
MPD 0.78
TouchNo Touch
This attraction was reviewed by Team Scare Response Unit on October 2, 2016.

Summary

There’s more than just corn being grown at this haunted farm’ something evil lurks here. Schmitt’s Haunted Farm houses two attractions during its Halloween season: The Haunted Mansion of Melville and the Haunted Cornfield. Located in Melville, Long Island, this year-round farm digs up the demented for their fall festivities, letting loose a crop of ghouls and goblins to terrorize the masses. From carnivorous cuddlies to dolly-dangling delinquents, this haunt houses a number of different psychos who want to play with you.

Cast7.4

The cast here worked very well with their surroundings and knew when to trigger certain effects… or use a well-timed air horn on an unsuspecting guest. There were a few who lacked energy, but it was late and close to closing time, so I’m sure the actors just felt spent from carving up all of their previous victims. There was one roamer who decided to follow us through half of the haunt and, in the process, effectively cut off one member of the group from the rest… but doing so caused a lot of the other actors to not realize… Read More…

Costuming7.4

The costumes matched the rooms nicely and, with the exception of the one roamer, each was appropriate and authentic to their dwelling. Masks were used sparingly and worked well when they were. Out in the corn maze, an assortment of creatures and creeps waited for fresh meat and most blended into the corn maze pretty well. I couldn’t get a good look at some of their makeup due to dark rooms, but the ones I did see (especially their hillbillies) looked really good.

Customer Service7.1

While you wait in line, you may just make friends with a giant, bloodied bunny. Don’t be scared of his blood-covered fur though, you should be more concerned about the hatchet he’s carrying. Lines for the haunt and corn maze are labeled and easy to find and there are portapotties lined up next to the ticket booth for those who wish to empty themselves before venturing in. The staff here were professional, but we did feel a bit rushed by some of them.

Atmosphere7.3

The haunt and corn maze are on farmland… befitting the corn maze very well. A lone, dark tree and a hearse stand in front of the haunt itself, which is a foreboding fa������������������ade of the terrors to come. The eeriness of the corn maze is made even more creepy by the lack of music or sound effects used, making it dead silent at times. There was a little bit of ‘real world’ bleed-through in the haunt, though… especially one bright, yellow backpack in plain sight in one of the dark rooms.

Special Effects6.8

There were a small handful of props used at this haunt that caught my attention. My favorite being a horn/light combo that will leave you dazed and not ready for whatever might happen next. Some props even had their own sounds built into them, which were just low enough to make you wonder if the prop is actually making noise as you walk by it… or if you are slowly descending into madness along with the rest of the house’s inhabitants. A few of the rooms and hallways were simply just black walls with an occasional picture or hand-drawn doodle… Read More…

Theme

While the haunt was broken into two distinct attractions, neither of which really had one set theme. The mansion went from hillbillies to killer clowns (both of which did a great job) and the corn maze had a variety of frightening folk hiding behind the tall crops.

Scare Factor7.1

I have to give kudos here to one very slick corn maze clown. It is very hard to catch me off guard and make me jump, but one silent, sneaky clown got the best of me… and for that, I applaud him. A number of rooms gave their scares to the whole group; but, as mentioned above, we had an unexpected guest in the second half of the haunt and his attention to one specific group member drew everyone else’s attention to them as well. There was a lot of silent creeping out from walls and corn as well as… Read More…

Entertainment & Value7.5

This is another haunt that is part of the ScreamLI.com deal, offering tickets to 4 haunted houses for $80. Alone, Schmitts Haunted Farm sells tickets to it’s two attractions separately for $22 and $12, respectively, or as a combo for $32. We managed to go through the haunt and corn maze in under 25 minutes though, which makes the scare-per-dollar ratio a bit low.

Experience Levels

MASTER: 100 reviews of 60 unique haunts in 10 years.

EXPERT: 50 reviews of 30 unique haunts in 5 years.

VETERAN: 15 reviews of 10 unique haunts in 3 years.

APPRENTICE: 5 reviews of 5 unique haunts in the past year.

NOVICE: Entry-level team.

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