Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (Movie Review)

It is hard to believe that the original Hotel Transylvania was released almost a decade ago.  As of today, there are 3 sequels and a television show.  I guess you just can’t keep a ghoulish monster down.  In 2012 the horror snob in me thumbed his nose at the idea of the unholy union of Adam Sandler and classic movie monsters.  My child at the time was aging out of animated features and I did not want to sully his sensibilities with such dreck.  Then I had more kids and was looking for child-friendly horror-related content to expose them to.  My wife kept suggesting Hotel Transylvania movies and didn’t understand my eye rolls.  Having exhausted all other options I finally gave in.  Then the unimaginable happened.  I kinda liked them.  As a horror fan, there are definitely cringy moments that made me want to rage against the screen but as a goofy dad, I also had plenty of chuckles.  The real joy was having a shared experience with my kids probably not unlike the joy my dad might have felt showing me Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein back in the day.  In the end, I learned to tame my inner toxic fandom and embrace the schlock. 

That brings us to the latest installment Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (the 4th and reportedly final installment).  It was originally supposed to have a theatrical run in Oct of 2021 but due to Covid concerns was sold to Amazon for streaming in January 2022.  The director of the first three Genndy Tartakovsky has been replaced with Derek Drymon and Jennifer Kluska.  Even Adam Sandler and Kevin James sit this one out.  Their characters Dracula and Frankenstein are replaced by Brian Hull and Brad Abrell respectively.  Brian’s impression is so good I did not realize the switch until the credits rolled.  The rest of the cast remains the same with Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Kathryn Hahn, Jim Gaffigan, Steve Buscemi, Molly Shannon, David Spade, Keegan-Michael Key, and Fran Drescher.

In this installment, the titular hotel is celebrating its 125th anniversary.  The party is in full swing and its owner Dracula (Brian Hull) is preparing to announce his retirement.  He plans to leave the hotel to his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) and his human son-in-law Johnny (Andy Samberg).  After Jonathan bungles the anniversary celebration Dracula gets cold feet about handing over the hotel to him and makes up a lie regarding real estate policy in Transylvania having a monsters only clause.  Johnny goes to ex-monster-hunter turned inventor Van Helsing (Jim Gaffigan) for a solution.  Van Helsing produces a ray gun that turns monsters into humans and humans into monsters.  It is haphazardly used then the rare crystal inside of it is broken.  With various monsters and humans having their natures switched hilarity ensues as they race to find another crystal before the changes are irreversible.  There is plenty of fun to be had with all of the character shifts.  We finally get to see what the Invisible Man looks like.  Child pleasing animated slapstick comedy ensues and life lessons are learned.  It is a fun breezy watch on Amazon Prime with the family.  Don’t feel guilty for checking your phone at times but also take time to be present with your kids.