Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Just like "Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark" (one of many reasons back in my day to go to the library and read them voraciously), "Goosebumps" stories were mainly for kids about kids involved in none too perilous situations with ghouls, giant insect creatures, werewolves and so on. I don't have any particularly vivid memories of the R.L. Stein's books, some of which I checked out back in the 1990's (possibly a lot to do with my younger brother) but I am sure their thrills, chills and spills came close to this 2015 feature film version. "Goosebumps" the movie is successful at creating humor and mining it out of these creatures that run havoc on a small town and the teen characters doing their best to avoid them.
A new kid on the block named Zach (Dylan Minnette), living specifically in a small Delaware town, has just moved in with his single mother (Amy Ryan - diverting in every way) who is the new vice principal of her son's high school. Awwkkkward. Meanwhile, there is a mysterious neighbor who is none other than a fictionalized version of R.L. Stine (played with real zeal and perfect pitch by Jack Black). Stine has a 16-year-old daughter, Hannah (Odeya Rush), who is lovestruck by Zach and there is a fairly romantic bit where they visit an abandoned funhouse. Trouble is nigh as Zach assumes Hannah is being held prisoner in her house and he finds out more than he bargained for. There are dozens of locked books written by Stine that once they are unlocked, every monster created in the books, including the Abominable Snowman and Slappy the Dummy, are unleashed and ready to eviscerate the entire town.
"Goosebumps" works best with its appealing, colorfully drawn characters including Jack Black's Stein, who knows his monsters could disrupt and destroy everything in their path; Dylan Minnette's Zach who can't begin to understand what is happening and is a bit of a scaredy cat; Odeya Rush's sweet Hannah who has a secret that may come as a surprise to Stein fans, and the rollicking comic relief of Ryan Lee ("Super 8") as Champ, who scares very easily.
The monsters in "Goosebumps" are fun for a while yet they are CGI creations and there might be too much time devoted to them. Some of the special-effects in the climax are so overwhelming that you temporarily lose sight or focus of what you are seeing. Still, for Jack Black's fussy and determined RL Stein and its engaging cast, "Goosebumps" will do as an "Evil Dead" for kids.
