Hotel Transylvania Review - Loud, Annoying and Dull
rating: 2
On the heels of the recent spate of horror animations Paranorman and Frankenweenie comes Adam Sandlers family-friendly submission, which has the executive producer and stars sense of humour stamped all over it from the immature jokes, the silly voices, the protagonists penchant for singing (GROAN!) and the supporting cast made up of the usual mainstays of comedy. The setting is the archetypal castle in Transylvania, which count Dracula (Sandler) has turned into a fortress to protect his daughter Mavis from the evil humans who murdered his wife. It is also a Hotel for all monsters wishing to escape from the human world. Every year he throws a lavish party for Mavis and invites all of his closest friends (Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Invisible Man, The Werewolf and countless other ubiquitous characters of the horror genre all voiced by Sandlers buddies). This year she is turning 118 and is ready to take her father up on his promise that she may venture outside the castle gates to mingle with the human world, which is Dracs worst nightmare. But thanks to a well-staged rouse he thinks he has scared her straight and shell never want to stray. But this all changes when live-life-to-the-full, backpacker Jonathan (Andy Samberg) walks through the doors and he and Mavis fall madly in love. Before I say any more, I must add that if youre over ten, your enjoyment of this movie will be entirely dependent on your feelings towards the producer and star Sandler. If you love him, then this is most certainly a film you will enjoy as it allows Sandler to showcase his vocal talents by doing different accents singing and having a laugh with his usual collaborators. However, if like me, you feel his brand of humour has grown stale and Sandler movies have become lazy, tired affairs then you will hate this. Sandler is at his annoying best here. His Dracula impression is annoying when he is speaking but too much to bear when he is singing.
It is nowhere near as objectionably and offensively bad as his previous foray into animation the repulsive Eight Crazy nights but Hotel Transylvania is so pale in comparison to animations from Pixar and Dreamworks in every aspect that it looks like a vampire in a mirror. The archetypal story elements the overprotective father having to come to terms with his little girl becoming a woman and letting go of prejudices are handled in the most straightforward of manners, lacking any twists or creative tweaks that would surprise an audience. The movie derives most of its humour, or rather attempts to derive it, from monsters acting out of character. This is a very comedic idea and the setting of a Hotel where all these great characters who are often depicted as one dimensional, blood thirsty, killing machines gather to moan about the human world whilst acting very human also has great legs, which I feel if Pixar or someone other than Sandler was handling would have made for a great film. Instead we get farting and burping jokes, lots of running, screaming and falling around and lots of loud, silly sound effects. We also get the like Dracula done-to-death denouement that involves an airport! The real joys in this film come from Steve Buschemis vocal contribution as the character of the people shy wolf. Preferring to play it safe and live in the shadows, this overworked parent to a litter of twenty-plus cubs provided me with the few pitiful titters. 
Most disappointing for me is the fact it is directed by animation legend Genndy Tartakovsky, the man responsible for such great Cartoon Network shows as Dexters Laboratory, The Powerpuff Girls and Samurai Jacks. Those shows were such intelligent, ground-breaking animated TV shows, which showcased a style of storytelling that managed to walk that fine line between being family friendly but also containing moments of dark humour and violence. Like Ren and Stimpy, they were perceived to be childrens shows but they were much more adult than the channel and timeslots they were broadcast on would have you believe. Tartakovsky also brought about a change in the way animated shows for kids were made, raising the bar. He then continued to develop this with The Star Wars Clone Wars series, which he produced and directed. I was hoping that with a subject matter like this, Hotel Transylvania would be as visually sumptuous and scintillating as it was exhilarating on a story level. I can only hope that it was the influence of Sandler and the support he had from the studio that led Tartakovsky astray and not that the animation legend has lost his touch. A cuddlier outing for the kids in this month of Halloween than the magnificently macabre Frankenweenie, but lacking the style, creativity, intelligence and wit of Tim Burtons return to form. In no way the worst movie in Sandlers recent catalogue, but further proof that he needs to step away from the producers chair and be a lot more discerning about the types of movies he chooses. Hotel Transylvania is out now in UK cinemas.