Goosebumps Movie Review (Spoiler Free)

Be Aware… You are in for a scare… Slappy, the Werewolf of Fever Swamp and the Snowman of Pasadena are all coming to life!

Genre: Comedy / Fantasy / Horror

Director: Rob Letterman

Cast: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Ryan Lee, Jillian Bell, Halston Sage, Steven Krueger, Keith Arthur Bolden & Amy Ryan.

Run Time: 103 min.

US Release: 16 October 2015

UK Release:  05 February 2016

German Release: 04 February 2016

My first review of 2016 is a movie that was released mid-October 2015, in the States. I am talking about the Goosebumps film starring Jack Black. Although it is coming out in Germany in February, I managed to watch it on the big screen at the end of December. Originally I planned this to be my last review of 2015, but thought it might be better to end the year with a bang,  therefore deciding to upload my The Peanuts Movie review instead. 

The “Goosebumps” book series used to be a huge part of my childhood; those short horror novels were what got me into reading. I had the whole original collection in German and the 2000 Series in English. They made my reading time in bed the most exciting part of the day! I also stood up early in the mornings during the weekends to watch the TV series and cherished each episode.

When I first heard of this production, I was pretty sure that the film was going to be a complete failure, especially knowing the director. Letterman and Black’s last collaboration ended up being the big-screen comedy Gulliver’s Travels, and that one got terribly panned by critics, for good reason. Goosebumps, though, was quite the surprise; previous reviewers gave it moderate and mildly positive reviews, praising the friendly charm of this horror-comedy. 

The movie revolves around teenager Zach Cooper (Minnette), who moves out into the suburbs with his mother (Ryan). Their neighbours are none other than famous children's literature author R.L. Stine (Black) and his daughter Hannah (Rush), who live secluded from the outside world inside their semi-mansion. When Cooper enters the Stines’ house to visit Hannah, he accidentally opens a book that sets a monster from the novels free. From here on out, Stine, Cooper, Hannah and their friend Champ (Lee) are chasing the monsters around town, trying to suck them back into the pages. 

The best part about the plot is the fact that the narrative is original and not taken from any of Stine’s books or the Goosebumps TV episodes. I also enjoyed the little inside jokes, such as how every book in the franchise is built up the same way, or comparing the author to horror master Stephen King. 

The movie itself, like the books, was fast-paced with twists here and there. There are no slow segments, and even though this might be a point for critique in other features, it benefited Goosebumps well because it reflects how the books were written. It is a humble and fun little monster flick made for families, giving parents, as well as children, something to laugh about.

When it comes to the performances, Jack Black is simply portraying himself. He is a little over the top at the beginning, but it did start dialling down once the story moved forward. He also isn’t anything like how I imagined R.L. Stine to be, but it serves this movie well for what it is. On a side note, I just want to mention that the real R.L. Stine makes a small cameo appearance.

Dylan Minnette and Odeya Rush are the real stars of this movie. Minnette already made a grand impression in Villeneuve’s crime-drama Prisoners, while Rush did a solid job as the sweet girl next door. Both had good chemistry on screen.

The cinematography in Goosebumps is well handled, yet nothing special. As I said before, this is a very energy-filled and fast-paced premise, and it is reflected in each scene, partially by adding quick cuts. The effects are alright for this type of film (a mild and family-friendly horror flick), and it was a pleasure to see the mixing of computer-generated imagery with practical effects. Having said that, the CGI is definitely the movie's weak point!

Music-wise, for all of the fans of the TV show, the original soundtrack makes no appearance. Danny Elfman composed a new and original score for this silver-screen rendition that suits the film well.

---

Verdict: This movie is far better than I had anticipated. It has a couple of scares, a lot of humour and like the books, it was very fast-paced. Black is his usual self, but it was Minnette and Odeya Rush that stood out in this fun family-horror. The story is good and the effects, although being the weakest element, look acceptable. I would probably have appreciated it more if it had been released around Halloween time, but it also worked as a fun, nostalgic movie experience. I will give Goosebumps a 7.0 out of 10.

So, that was my analysis of the Goosebumps movie. Did you go and see it already? What did you think of it? Leave a comment below and hit the like button if you liked this review. As always, thank you for reading.