When the last film came out, it felt like the right
way to end up the animated monster franchise. The climatic DJ battle had some
good beats, united enemies as friends, and there were so much love going on. It
felt right.
But now, like “Toy Story 4,” we have a new conclusion
in this franchise. Also, like “Toy Story 4,” it brings everyone (mostly) back
to look at similar themes that barely take us anywhere fresh or new. When you
would like this to look at more real topics (like maybe Johnny being afraid of
not living long enough to keep the vampire family growing), “Hotel
Transylvania: Transformania” stays a silly scare-fest that gives some good
laughs.
This is the first film in the franchise not to be
directed by Genndy Tartakovsky (who’s credited in this film as a co-writer).
Also, this is the first film not to have Adam Sandler entertaining us as Count
Dracula and Kevin James as Frankenstein. (Soundalikes Brian Hull and Brad
Abrell replace them.) Preston Barta said in his review, “A lot of value is lost
in their absence, but the main reason Transformania dips is mostly due to its
lackluster story.”
It has the context to give the laughs from start to
finish: Johnny (Andy Samberg) worries that he’ll never live up to what Dracula
expects from someone married to his daughter (Selena Gomez). That’s when Johnny
seeks a tractor-beam from one of Van Helsing’s (Jim Gaffigan) latest
inventions: a gem that transforms a human into a monster, or a monster into a
human. Get ready for Johnny to turn into a big-toothed dragon and Dracula into
a balding man with a dad bod. (“It’s like “Freaky Friday” but on a Tuesday.”)
About 15 minutes in, the humor starts to pick up. Each
of the main characters change into admittedly funny humans even if a little
weak. (David Spade’s Invisible Man becomes a completely nude, Larry Fine-looking
man, and that was the talk on the Internet.)
Despite the jokes, the story feels more of the same.
Characters look like they’re relearning lessons when there’s a good chance to
go beyond that. Barta asked, “So, why not shake it up by asking some genuine
questions about mortality? (Hey, even Twilight did it.) Instead, the
storytellers spoon-feed you some low-hanging fruit.”
Barta ended his review by saying, “Compared to its
predecessors, Transformania feels like a lazy straight-to-video journey. It’s
easily the weakest entry in the series, but it’s also harmless. You can’t
ignore how it makes you smile. (My son laughed out loud a few times and stayed
locked in, so it earns points for that.)”
Personally, I found myself enjoying this one, but I
can’t really say this may be the weakest in the franchise. If you have an
Amazon Prime and have seen all of the films in the franchise, then I say check
this one out. I think people will enjoy this one a lot. Even though people
might think there was no need to make another film (even I thought that), but I
think there is a lot of enjoyment here. If you didn’t like the last one, this
one might make you fall in love with the series, even though it is going back
to what Dracula had to learn in the first movie. Check it out and judge for
yourself. Hopefully they don’t make another sequel because there is no need.
Thank you for joining in on tonight’s review. Look out
this Friday for the finale of “Space Month.”
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