Hotel Transylvania

Hotel Transylvania

Starring Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, Kevin James

Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky

The Story:
After human killed his wife, Count Dracula (Adam Sandler) vows to raise his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) away from humankind by creating a hotel safely protected in all sides by monsters where he can house fellow monsters in full protection of humans.  On Mavis's 118th birthday, Mavis desires to go into the human world, to which Dracula reluctantly agrees, but unbeknownst to her, has a town set up with his zombie workers to make Mavis afraid of humans.

While Dracula prepares for his daughter's party, the hotel is teeming with guests including Dracula's friends Frankenstein (Kevin James), Wayne the werewolf (Steve Buscemi), Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade) and Murray the Mummy (CeeLo Green).  As the party kicks off, human Jonathan (Andy Samberg) stumbles his way to the hotel, and Dracula tries to get rid of him, but when sparks fly between Jonathan and Mavis, he finds it virtually impossible to get rid of him, and as he tries to conceal his true identity, he begins to believe that humans aren't as bad as they used to be.

The Synopsis:
Adam Sandler is easily one of the worst actors out there.  He was once a dominant force in the comedy world with classics such as "The Waterboy," "Billy Madison" and "Happy Gilmore," but his career started nose-diving afterward, resorting to bland, unfunny comedies that follow the same problematic formula.

However, then there's another side of Adam Sandler, one where he's regulated to supplying his voice for roles in animation, and here he becomes much more tolerable.  "Eight Crazy Nights" is a laugh riot, and then he released the family-friendly "Hotel Transylvania," and it once again was a laugh-out-loud riot filled with timely, well-placed jokes delivered with quickfire speed that forces you to re-watch the movie to get the jokes you missed because you were laughing so loud.

Here he re-teams with the majority of his acting troupe, who also have had declining careers as the years went by, but much like Sandler, manages to re-create their old comedic timing here.  Kevin James is a lovable, caring version of Frankenstein.  David Spade is a witty, sarcastic invisible man.  Steve Buscemi is a hilarious werewolf who has way too many cubs (in particular the scene where he's trying to sleep with his brood all on him is downright hilarious).  Adding to the group is the ever-funny Andy Samberg as the witless human who's absolutely lovable and dorky, Fran Drescher as Frankenstein's wife who is every man's nightmare for a wife, Molly Shannon as the werewolf's loving, doting wife, and CeeLo Green as the musical mummy.  Selena Gomez also delivers a knockout vocal performance as Mavis, the innocent girl who just wants to experience the world.  Together they pack a comedic punch right in the gut that will have you rolling in laughter.

Director Genndy Tartakovsky takes the classic Universal monsters and crafts a unique tale that makes them not so scary (although if you watch the classic creature features now, you'll wonder how anyone found them frightening to begin with), as well as pays homage to their classic heritage by cleverly tying in the timeframe of the film to Dracula's classic tale.  Careful attention to detail has been placed in the story, which makes this film not just a pleasure for children, but adults who have fond memories of their classic creatures as well. The story is as simple as time, and one you've seen countless times before, but here it manages to draw you in due to the comedic timing and clever setting of the story.  It's a children's tale, so there's no big twists or reveals to boggle the mind, but rather it's a mindless romp through childhood past.

The animation of the film is nothing short of spectacular, which comes as no surprise for a company such as Sony/Colombia.  The film is filled with a great blend of vibrant, rich colors as well as droll, dark hues that establishes the setting and pulls you deeper into the tale, as well as create intricate characters that have been in existence for decades and make them more modern and unique.  The film was even nominated for two VES Awards for Outstanding Animation and Outstanding Animated Character. 

The Summary:
"Hotel Transylvania" is one of those rare gems featuring Adam Sandler in a hilarious role that made me appreciate him all the more, and wish he would just do voice-over acting from now on.

The Score: A