I saw Haunted Castle at an IMAX theater, so I viewed it with the full 3-D effects. And yes, I did have to wear those goofy-looking goggles.

I don't go to IMAX very often. I did see one IMAX movie about dinosaurs that turned out to be kiddified. When the T-Rex roared, it came out as a squeak. It turned me off to IMAX movies in general. Haunted Castle changed my mind.

For the most part, IMAX movies tend to be theme park rides for people who don't like to be in theme parks. It's all the visual, none of the physical. Fortunately, Haunted Castle bucks the trend.

The movie's only 40 minutes long, so there's not much of a plot. But there doesn't need to me. Johnny, a up-and-coming musician, is invited to his biological mother's castle to collect on his estate. Only Johnny hasn't seen his mom since he was three. And oh yeah, the castle is haunted.

The 3-D effects kick in immediately: A branch nearly pokes you in the eye (I ducked). A flock of crows comes screeching right at you (I screamed, "AAAGH!"). And then you're floating at the top of the castle, looking down at Johnny's car as he pulls in. Something is watching Johnny -- his mother's spirit, escaped from her pact with Mister D

For the two people who haven't figured out where this is going, Mister D = The Devil (tm). In this movie, the devil takes the form of a really pissed off fireplace. Accompanying Mister D and providing a bit of humor is Mephisto, a pretty typical demon who jabbers on about hell and contracts and such.

This would all make for a rather boring Saturday morning cartoon if it weren't for the fact that 1) the movie is in 3-D and 2) it's filled with musical interludes.

Johnny's journey through the Haunted Castle and hell gives him the opportunity to visit a lot of damned musicians. And by that I mean guys who have been locked in hell for violating their contracts with Mister D. Musical instruments float through the air, playing different tunes. Skeletal musicians blow on horns or play mouldy guitars. All throughout, music is playing, screeching, thrumming, thudding. With the 3-D effects, it's like a serious drug trip.

Eventually, Johnny takes a ride through hell itself. The grand tour, so to speak. The mechanism that transports him through the tour is ingenious -- it's alternately a car, a rollercoaster, a ferris wheel, and a trolley -- but the movie does stray into "spectator thrill ride" territory. Still, the settings are so amazing that it's hard to notice.

During his tour, Johnny gets to view the comedic scene of the Monkeys. These weird little mechanical monkeys play music while a wrecking ball-type machine slowly dismembers them. It's cruel but it's funny at the same time.

Suddenly, the trip gets derailed -- literally -- when Johnny's transport bumps into another cart (head on!) and falls into The Opera House. This is not a house anyone wants to visit.

The Opera House is by far the most gruesome part of the movie. It's also really not all that bad. We see various damned souls getting tortured even as they sing opera. One fellow sings a note and with each note, a swinging axe descends over his head. Another is electrocuted. A third is dipped into acid.

The catch is that we see only empty torture devices. Rotating around the devices are picture frames of sorts that show the soul being tortured. Just as the real gore would start, the picture frame rotates away and we see the empty torture device again. This is FAR CREEPIER than actually seeing the gore. Imagine that!

Ironically, the IMAX company really didn't want this movie to get out into theaters because of its supposedly graphic content. It's not for children, certainly. But it's hardly any of the bloody gibbets that is spattered on the screen of most movies today -- and if it scares people into being good and abiding by their contracts, heck I'm all for it.

Johnny gets caught and dragged back to the den where Mister D awaits his final answer. Only then, after seeing all this nasty stuff in hell, does the demon offer him the promise of unimaginable fame and fortune and the ability to play a wicked guitar riff. Will Johnny take it?

All throughout, Jonny's mother keeps whispering, "don't listen to him!" Johnny does, of course -- it'd be a very boring movie if he didn't. But really, Mister D and Mephisto make the decision to Just Say No to Hell an easy one. Cause, you know, maybe the forces of Hell shouldn't show you Hell BEFORE you sign the contract.

The entire movie is computer generated, interspersed with live actors. The backdrops themselves steal the show -- I was caught up trying to look off into the distance to see the details that the creators lovingly crafted. It's so well done that it's absolutely breathtaking.

The musicians are excellent. Kyoko Baertsoen plays Johnny's mother, and we get to see her sing in a weird hologram-like performance. There's not much to it -- she sings and gestures and undulates even as the camera swings around her in 3-D and little blue flecks of light float up towards us. But it doesn't matter. Kyoko's voice is almost angelic and combined with the IMAX effects, I found myself getting caught up.

By far the best part of the movie is the end. Johnny does say no, hurling the guitar Mister D offered him into the fireplace and then...and then...he breaks into song.

Not just any song, but La Donna E Mobile -- the very same infamous opera song. As he sings, the mansion falls apart around him, eventually collapsing in on itself. The triumphant glory of opera beating the forces of evil brought a tear to my eye. This probably has something to do with the fact that my father is a musician, so I admit my bias.

Six months later we see Johnny's band, obviously quite successful without Mister D's help. The band Arid plays a little music video while the credits scroll. The tune, "Little Things of Venom" has a haunting beat that fades in and out through the entire movie, so seeing and hearing it performed at the end is a great payoff.

I liked this movie a lot. The combination of horror, special effects, and music make the 40 minutes go by all too quickly -- I wanted to see more of the beautiful, haunting landscapes and hear more from Kyoko (and see more of her too, MRRROW!).

But it's not for little kids. This is one of those rare cases where I can forgive parents who mistakenly brought their children in to see a fun movie. I imagine it won't phase older children at all, but kiddies under 10 could be quite traumatized by talking fireplaces, animated gargoyles, flying demonic cherubs, walking suits of armor, performing skeletons, and tortured souls.