RECAP:  A surprising chainsaw ambush kicks off this year’s exploration of Fright Manor with a bang immediately upon setting foot into the lethal attack zone identified by signage as “Terror in the Woods” making it easy to see why beach-going sunbathers have been sliced open and left covered in blood!  Spooky music accompanies the appearance of a mysterious gravedigger noisily slamming his shovel to the ground outside a house that finds the dining room and kitchen areas littered with body parts, and occupied by a plasma-soaked cook pulling a head out of pot that’s cooking on her stove asking, “Who’s ready for some fresh meat?”

Having already enjoyed a nice dinner, declining her invitation continues the exploration into a bathroom interrupting a peeing boy, and witnesses a hanged body dripping blood into a disgusting bathtub!  Hay bales and staked, pumpkin-headed scarecrows chaperone advancement into a butcher shop of slayed animals; their craniums hung from hooks, and the slaughterer anxious to detain intruders in his oversized freezer! Eluding the meat merchant leads through an active hallway of mechanical surprises popping out from all sides and even above, and discovers a notice plastered on one of the walls confirming our worst suspicion – that the building has been long since condemned! 

Continuance through a room full of dolls attracts the interest of a stalker that comes following along from behind holding onto one of the creepy figurines.  Dim hallways conceal a sudden, barking dog assault in advance of “Deranged Deception,” where a strange ghoul in a bed is covered with a pentagram blanket, lights begin to flicker, imprisoned skeletons shake vigorously, and a growling convict sits in an electric chair somehow fighting off the jolting shocks of voltage that are attempting to fry her to death!  Venturing to the other side of the jail revisits the same inmate inside a cell now wickedly laughing and bragging, “You can’t kill me!”

Barrels crash down from above provoking the wrath of a second chainsaw assailant intent on claiming some more, “Fresh meat!” who gives chase into the cold storage chamber of The Marion County Morgue, where corpses rise up from beneath sheets on gurneys, and a psychotic doctor performs some sort of tragic surgery on a not-so-lucky patient in an ill-fated operating room!  After sticking his hands inside the victim’s chest cavity, he slams them down on the OR table flinging blood at passersby! 

Fortunately, a duck-under/crawl space provides an escape route and accesses an animated walkway lined with mutilated, limb-missing torsos in advance of "The Twizted Circus," a carnival of game-playing jesters using a sledge hammer to play Putt-Putt golf with a human head!  Encouraging a group member to become a participant, she happily accepts and after inflicting a few clubbing strokes, is rewarded with his putter (sledge hammer) as a prize!

Death Row is up next, home to an up-close-and-personal run-in with Scream’s Ghostface!  When asked what his favorite scary movie is, he angrily replied, “That’s MY line!”  From there it’s onto a glow-in-the-dark room of Jason (Voorhees) masks, and past more falling barrels into the waiting arms of Nightmare on Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger!  Putting his razor-sharp “fingers” up to our throats, he promises, “This won’t hurt one little bit!”

Briefly interrupting the horror movie marathon, "Patchez," a horn-honking clown, presents a group member with her demented, possessed, “Annabelle” doll to take home with her and haunt her for all eternity!  Afterwards, a claustrophobic tunnel reignites the slasher film scenario with the unexpected return of Ghostface demanding, “Answer the phone!”  The theme from Halloween signals Michael Myers’ bedroom arrival, cornering progression and blocking passage with his murderous knife!  Body bags yield to a second deadly conflict with The Bogeyman, as a sign points the way to Hell sparking the rage of a masked, smiling, hair-spiked goon revving up a chainsaw for a ferocious chase-out of Fright Manor!

ANALYSIS:  Back for its 42^nd season, this is one of the strongest performances Fright Manor has delivered in recent years!  If you're looking for dark and creepy; spooky and scary, you came to the right place!  The attraction starts things off at a fever pitch right off the bat with the first of three chainsaw skirmishes, delves through blood and gore while exploring various rooms of the old haunted house, then visits clowns, an electrocution with a twist, and several infamous horror film aggressors before kicking you out with one last chainsaw for good measure!  Pneumatics are perfectly placed and provide excellent scares. Soundtrack and lighting are both complementary.  Design incorporates a duck-under and a crawl space, and cleverly builds multiple attack doors into several scenes providing actors more than one chance to engage and interact with customers.

2024’s Fright Manor subsections are advertised as Back Country and Fear in the Dark, but it really isn’t made clear where one ends and the other picks up, thus the event is staged as one lengthier experience, which is good.  Signage is somewhat misplaced or inaccurate at times, as Death Row seems more relevant to the jail/electrocution scene and Terror in the Woods reflects back to one of 2021’s segments, although it’s most appropriate for the actions being depicted in its presence.

Best performers include doctor, jailbird, Freddy, Ghostface, Myers and Smiley!  Other chainsaw maniacs; Twizted, the Putt-putt clown; and Patchez are also memorable.

Cost of general admission is $25 ($20 for military, police, firefighters, and senior citizens with photo ID), and parking is free.   Speed Passes sell for $35 and a Season’s Pass is available for $65.  Beginning on September 27^th and continuing through November 2^nd, Fright Manor is open on Fridays and Saturdays from 7:30 to 11:30 PM (until 10 PM the first weekend in November), and until 9:30 PM Tuesdays through Sundays 10/22 – 10/31.  A portion of the proceeds supports The Southport Little League.

Ohio Valley Haunts always looks forward to visiting Fright Manor, Indy's SCARIEST Haunted House!  We hope you do too!