By: Declan Hertel Entertainment Editor
When I was a kid, I was a wimp. As such, I only read a few of R.L. Stine’s bestselling “Goosebumps” stories. They were “2spooky4me,” as the joke goes.
That said, the ones I did read, I really loved, especially “Night of the Living Dummy.” They were spooky, fun reads starring kids just like me! And with 350 million copies sold as of 2014 and a further two million copies a year according to Scholastic, there are far more people who are far more invested in the series than I ever was.
The new film, starring Jack Black (“School of Rock”) as R.L. Stine himself, is clearly meant for that dedicated fan base, right down to the story following the same formula as many of the books: kid moves to new town, many spooky things happen, and the spooky things are eventually triumphed over.
This may sound disparaging, but I think keeping the formula intact helped the movie achieve its purpose: a healthy dose of nostalgia for the older viewers, while introducing the younger generation to these old tales of terror.
I expected three things out of this movie: scares, heart, and laughs; what I consider the three pillars of children’s horror cinema.
While the movie was lacking in the first and decent in the second, it definitely had plenty of the third.
The lack of any appreciable frights is easily the biggest disappointment of the movie. Even though the source material was kid lit, it was called “Goosebumps” for a reason.
While the visual rendering of virtually every monster from the book series is really cool, none of it ever approaches frightening, and the “greatest hits” parade of monsters unfortunately feels rushed. However, the inclusion of Slappy the Dummy (also Jack Black) as the main antagonist of the story was pretty darn freaky.
“Goosebumps” was better at delivering on the heart, though it took some time to get around to it.
While the lack of scares was disappointing, the biggest problem with the movie is that it takes far too long to get off the ground. Though once it does, it starts to pick up speed admirably with the introduction of Hannah (Odeya Rush, “The Giver”) to our handsome, witty protagonist Zach (Dylan Minnette).
I was initially skeptical of the impending romantic subplot, but I was pleasantly surprised by the chemistry and charm the two brought.
Speaking of pleasant surprises, “Goosebumps” is really, really funny, mostly thanks to Jack Black devouring the scenery. Black dominates every scene he’s in, carrying with him his trademark high-energy antics, a complete embrace of how ridiculous this entire exercise is, and a very conspicuous and utterly made-up accent (seriously, his exclamation of “Slappeh!” during the climax of the film made me double over with laughter).
If I am being honest, “Goosebumps” was nothing special, but if you like the books, want to see promising young actors deliver solid performances, or just can’t get enough Jack Black, you can’t go wrong.
3 out of 4 Paws.
