Rob Zombie’s Great American Nightmare

Villa Park, IL
Reviewed on:  Sunday, October 11, 2015

Returning for a second year at the Odeum Expo Center in Villa Park, IL from the American musician, film director, screenwriter and film producer, Rob Zombie, comes his famed, “Great American Nightmare.”  This year, the band is only opening up shop in Chicago. And might we say, is a very nice treat for us!

Rob and his crew bring 3 brand new concepts and even one additional surprise one that wasn’t advertised. How does one get into the mind of Rob Zombie? Well, as some clown might say, “Step Right Up!”

Approaching the entrance of the attraction, with no preconceived ideas of what we were about to experience, we were asked to place burlap sacks over our heads. From that point, we were thrown into a maze of darkness, fueled by the fear of our imagination… and some electric shock panels on the walls! Not only was this a huge surprise, but also psychologically leveled the playing field! We had no idea the wild ride we were in for…

As our eyes adjusted to the light, we found ourselves awaiting entrance to Captain Spaulding’s very own Clown School. On the surface, it is a 3D attraction filled with distractions from every angle and more bright lights than Vegas! The “faculty” made sure that you never knew what to look at, and even got us with some classic clown gags.

But, the real adventure was just about to begin. As we graduated, we were brought to meet with a Sheriff from the Ruggsville Police. Oh yes, and standing before us, was the entire set of the Firefly house. (Made famous in Rob’s “House of 1,000 Corpses” and “The Devils’ Rejects.”) Let us make a special mention. This wasn’t your typical “haunted house” set. This is the flown-blown thing. What makes it even more special? You get caught right in the middle of a shootout between the Fireflies and the police!

But then, Rufus opens the door, and lets you inside! Oh the horrors that awaited… included scenes of torture, mixed with dashes of all your favorite Firefly family members. The highlight without a doubt was the actress who portrayed, “Baby.” Not only did she and her “victim” stay extremely faithful to the original character, but she even looked like her! We honestly ended up almost causing a log-jam because we didn’t want to leave the performance! Bravo!

If full immersion into Rob’s most popular movies wasn’t enough, there was one more present in-store. Let’s call it a real-life “preview” of his upcoming movie, “31.” The story? Well patrons get to live it out, as they are captured and sent to “Murder World.” Here, we are forced to participate in a game called, 31, where the goal is to survive. Easier said than done, as each turn is filled with evil clowns ready to hunt us down!

The Bottom Line: HUGE improvements over last year’s show, which really left us loving the experience and wanting to grab the popcorn and re-watch everything all over again. If you are a Rob Zombie movie fan, this is an experience like non-other!

2015 Scores:

Entertainment: 18 out of 20
Scare Factor & Fright: 8 out of 10
Acting: 8 out of 10
Sets & Room Detail: 9 out of 10
Costumes: 5 out of 5
Make Up: 4 out of 5
Sound: 5 out of 5
Lights: 5 out of 5
Props & Special Effects: 8 out of 10
Originality & Story Concept: 10 out of 10
Management & Owner Presentation: 5 out of 5
Website: 5 out of 5

Total: 90 points out of 100 points possible

– Official Haunted House Chicago Review Team Review