Review of Goosebumps (2015) by Alessandro G — 26 Jan 2016

Goosebumps is an entertaining and charming family friendly spooky adventure that successfully brings back nostalgic memories while it makes you laugh and enjoy the ridiculous overall story. Funny, with countless pleasing references to the 80s, the movie offers an enjoyable ride for the fans of the novellas and the series and even can entertain those who have had no previous experience with the "Goosebumps" phenomenon.

Never taking itself too seriously, this family friendly entertainment has its flaws as kids would certainly enjoy it more than adults, but thanks to the strong performance of Jack Black (to the surprise of many!) the obvious issues in the story are easily forgotten. The story is about a young boy Zach (Dylan Minnette) who finds a new friend, the mysterious Hannah (Odeya Rush). Every time he tries to talk to Hannah, her strange parent Mr. Stine (Jack Black) intervenes and stops them. When Zach decides to challenge this, it turns out that there is a reason for Mr.Stine's behavior and a simple act of opening one of his books results in an adventure that is meant to entertain everyone.

It is true that nature of the content demands that one is really in the right mood in order to like it, but even if not, the loads of funny horror-heroes and feel-good moments would make the movie passable for everyone in the worst case. For the rest, the easy-going, light-hearted and filled with mixture of humor and kids friendly horror movie would be a satisfying ride in the world of R. L. Stine.