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Halloween is still a few weeks away, but families can begin gearing up for the haunted holiday now by checking out the spooky silliness of the animated family comedy Hotel Transylvania.
The main characters may be monsters, but the story is a familiar—and completely human—one. Single dad Dracula (voiced by Adam Sandler) wants to protect his daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez), from the hazards of the outside world—specifically humans, whose irrational fear of monsters puts their kind in constant danger. For that reason, Dracula has built Hotel Transylvania—a monsters-only resort that will keep Mavis safe forever.
As Dracula prepares for Mavis’s 118th birthday celebration, though, the hotel gets an unwelcome guest: a backpacking young human named Jonathan (Andy Samberg). In order to keep his guests from realizing the danger they’re in, Dracula disguises Jonathan as a monster. But before Dracula can rid the hotel of this human menace, Jonathan and Mavis meet, and (much to Drac’s chagrin) the sparks begin to fly.
As a new parent, I can’t help but notice that this year’s family films have focused on parenting faux pas. In Pixar’s Brave, Merida’s mother tried to rein her in and turn her into a proper princess. Now, even an immortal monster finds himself falling victim to the overwhelming urge to protect—and control—his child. If you have a child of your own, you’ll feel poor, well-meaning Drac’s pain, while headstrong young viewers will relate to Mavis’s need to break free and do her own thing.
The more serious plot points aside, though, Hotel Transylvania is a lot like the popular Disneyland ride, The Haunted Mansion. The film is filled with every kind of monster imaginable—from guests like Frankenstein (Kevin James) and his wife (Fran Drescher) to the witches and zombies who run the hotel. And those monsters make the movie just a little bit spooky—just like the ghosts make The Haunted Mansion an eerie experience. Still, deep down, it’s just a silly animated adventure, filled with fart jokes and slapstick wackiness, and presented in eye-popping 3D.
Hotel Transylvania isn’t the most sophisticated family comedy. It does, after all, star Adam Sandler, so it’s pretty safe to assume that some of the laughs will be pretty low-brow. If you’re willing to endure a little bit of scatological humor, though, you’ll also be treated to some clever moments and some amusing pop culture references, thanks to the comic sensibilities of people like director Genndy Tartakovsky (who’s known for cartoons like Dexter’s Laboratory and The Powerpuff Girls) and screenwriter Robert Smigel (of Saturday Night Live).
Sure, it won’t make your kids smarter or more sophisticated, but Hotel Transylvania is an enjoyably silly-spooky adventure—a cute family story with a Halloween twist.
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