Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween Movie Review - Ghosts on the Streets
A sequel to the 2015's Goosebumps, Haunted Halloween is a mixed bag of fun and laziness. Still, it can mostly be enjoyed because of its power-packed performances.
Cast - Madison Iseman, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Caleel Harris, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Chris Parnell, Ken Jeong, Jack Black
Directed By - Ari Sandel
Genre - Horror, Comedy, Adventure, Fantasy
Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween is the sequel to the 2015 Goosebumps film, and in this new instalment, the story is shifted to the town of Wardenclyffe. We see a teenager named Sarah Quinn (Madison Iseman) struggling to write an essay to enter into Columbia University. Her brother Sonny (Jeremy Ray Taylor) is the geeky child struggling to build the miniature size version of Tesla's Tower. There protective mother Kathy (Wendi McLendon-Covey) takes care of them. Sonny and his best friend Sam (Caleel Harris) start an after-school job called the "Junk Bros". So one day, they get a call to clean junk from a house which they find out seems to be abandoned, like those creepy haunted houses and while going through some things, they come across a book, and they open it. The rest of the film is about the havoc caused by the book leaving the town in danger and there attempts to save it.
Like many sequels in general, this film too is not as good as the first one but its also not devoid of any fun. The problem is that the fun is sprinkled in parts. It is mainly a disposable film with a cliched disposable plot which looks like as if the studios made it because they just wanted to release something for the Halloween. So naturally, the movie plays it safe and tries its best to entertain the audience. If only a little bit more thought and effort would have been given to the plot, then it could have become something more than just an average film.
Ari Sandel's direction and the visual effects in this film are also serviceable at best. Nothing out of the box or spell-bounding here. For a studio so big, this comes as a disappoint as they did have the budget and the capability to enhance the material. I guess they too seemed to be uninterested in this project. I love R. L. Stine's Goosebumps books and have read quite a few of them during my school days, and so as a fan who enjoyed both the novels and the first film, this one did disappoint me on some level.
Perhaps the only deal breakers that were worth watching for me were the actors in this film. Madison Iseman was terrific as a teenage girl ready to beat up your ass, be it a boy or a ghost. She is 21 I believe, only one year older than me and oh boy, she does have some amazing talent in her. The boys Jeremy Ray Taylor and Caleel Harris were also remarkable in their parts. Together they make up for some good comic presence on screen. Their mother played by Wendi McLendon-Covey didn't have much to do but was good in her part.
There is a scene where the events of the first film are referred which seemed forceful and the even the calling of Stine's character played by Jack Black didn't seem to fit here properly. But overall, this movie would be primarily enjoyed by all, as this is not a bad film, but I do think it could have been made better. Also, if you happen to come across a book or a piece of paper in a cabin or an abandoned house with gibberish written on it, for God's sake don't read it.
Rating - 2.5/5
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Cast - Madison Iseman, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Caleel Harris, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Chris Parnell, Ken Jeong, Jack Black
Directed By - Ari Sandel
Genre - Horror, Comedy, Adventure, Fantasy
Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween is the sequel to the 2015 Goosebumps film, and in this new instalment, the story is shifted to the town of Wardenclyffe. We see a teenager named Sarah Quinn (Madison Iseman) struggling to write an essay to enter into Columbia University. Her brother Sonny (Jeremy Ray Taylor) is the geeky child struggling to build the miniature size version of Tesla's Tower. There protective mother Kathy (Wendi McLendon-Covey) takes care of them. Sonny and his best friend Sam (Caleel Harris) start an after-school job called the "Junk Bros". So one day, they get a call to clean junk from a house which they find out seems to be abandoned, like those creepy haunted houses and while going through some things, they come across a book, and they open it. The rest of the film is about the havoc caused by the book leaving the town in danger and there attempts to save it.
Like many sequels in general, this film too is not as good as the first one but its also not devoid of any fun. The problem is that the fun is sprinkled in parts. It is mainly a disposable film with a cliched disposable plot which looks like as if the studios made it because they just wanted to release something for the Halloween. So naturally, the movie plays it safe and tries its best to entertain the audience. If only a little bit more thought and effort would have been given to the plot, then it could have become something more than just an average film.
Ari Sandel's direction and the visual effects in this film are also serviceable at best. Nothing out of the box or spell-bounding here. For a studio so big, this comes as a disappoint as they did have the budget and the capability to enhance the material. I guess they too seemed to be uninterested in this project. I love R. L. Stine's Goosebumps books and have read quite a few of them during my school days, and so as a fan who enjoyed both the novels and the first film, this one did disappoint me on some level.
Perhaps the only deal breakers that were worth watching for me were the actors in this film. Madison Iseman was terrific as a teenage girl ready to beat up your ass, be it a boy or a ghost. She is 21 I believe, only one year older than me and oh boy, she does have some amazing talent in her. The boys Jeremy Ray Taylor and Caleel Harris were also remarkable in their parts. Together they make up for some good comic presence on screen. Their mother played by Wendi McLendon-Covey didn't have much to do but was good in her part.
There is a scene where the events of the first film are referred which seemed forceful and the even the calling of Stine's character played by Jack Black didn't seem to fit here properly. But overall, this movie would be primarily enjoyed by all, as this is not a bad film, but I do think it could have been made better. Also, if you happen to come across a book or a piece of paper in a cabin or an abandoned house with gibberish written on it, for God's sake don't read it.
Rating - 2.5/5
Follow Me On:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/vikas_yadav98
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/vikasy199/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/vimovies123/
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