Today’s quick review: Hotel Transylvania. Over a century ago, Count Dracula (Adam Sandler) founded Hotel Transylvania as a safe haven for monsters the world over, especially for his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez). But when Mavis wants to leave home for her 118th birthday, Dracula does everything in his power to convince her the outside world is a scary place with the reluctant help of Jonathan (Andy Samberg), a human backpacker passing through.
Hotel Transylvania is an animated family comedy that recasts Dracula as an overprotective father. Still scarred by the loss of his wife at the hands of the humans years before, Dracula has channeled his vampiric powers into creating a resort that is perfectly safe—and perfectly boring—until a young human teaches him to loosen up. Hotel Transylvania gets some good mileage out of this premise, resulting in a tame but enjoyable family comedy.
Hotel Transylvania’s premise gives it plenty to work with. The monstrous nature of Dracula’s guests is a ready source of comedy, the accumulated lore of the monsters lets the movie play with pop culture and monster conventions, and the core plot point of Dracula keeping his daughter overly sheltered is a solid backbone for the movie. The gags are backed by a solid voice cast that includes Kevin James, Steve Buscemi, David Spade, and CeeLo Green.
The main sticking point for Hotel Transylvania is how on-the-nose it is. Everything from the setting to the story is designed to fill a specific role in a specific way, usually sacrificing broader world-building in favor of quick gags. Viewers who are just in the movie for light, family-friendly entertainment will not mind its superficial bent, but exacting viewers will find that its creativity dries up in a few places.
Hotel Transylvania skews formulaic, but the combination of a rich premise, a talented cast, and charming comedy makes it a worthwhile watch for those interested in what it has to offer. Give it a shot when you are in the mood for something unabashedly silly. For a more robust parody of classic horror, try Young Frankenstein. For an animated family adventure in a similar vein, try Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs or Spies in Disguise.
[7.1 out of 10 on IMDB](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0837562/). I give it a 6.5 to 7.0 for a basic but charming premise.