You might think that the whole point of making a high concept, animated movie would be to explore all of the plot’s driving forces. Take “Monsters Inc.” or “Finding Nemo”— films that created worlds with tangible identities and souls, places one could imagine visiting in a dream. Not so with “Hotel Transylvania.”
This movie’s central idea is that all of our classic monsters (Dracula, Frankenstein, etc.) are real, but that they remain in hiding from us. Ok. So...what would that be like? The movie doesn’t seem interested in answering or even asking that question. Everything feels half thought out, and serves merely as an excuse to get to the gags.
Its unoriginal plot features an overprotective parent and overflows with one-liners and uninteresting characters, creating a mess of clichés pieced together like Frankenstein himself. I wouldn’t even have cared if any of these characters had died (and I was bawling five minutes into “UP”).
It feels like the $100 million budget was weighing down on the writers and artists, so they resorted to palatable blandness in an attempt to please as many demographics as possible. This is strange because the film was the directorial debut of Genndy Tartakovsky, who is likely responsible for many 90's childhood memories. He created both “Dexter’s Lab” and the multiple–Emmy winning “Samurai Jack.” You can see his presence shine through in a few well-crafted images and sequences, but that about exhausts the film’s uniqueness.
Even though the credits start rolling before the 90 minute mark, this bloodless comedy felt overlong. If you absolutely need to see a new animated movie this fall, you’re probably better off waiting for “Frankenweenie.”
2/5 Stars
Directed by: Genndy Tartakovsky Written by: Peter Baynham and Robert Smigel Starring: Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, Steve Buscemi
