R.L. Stine's imaginary daughter saves the world.
“Goosebumps” was better than it should’ve been. Calling upon the aesthetic of a Joe Dante Amblin production, the film breaks away from most of the nostalgia trappings of the Buzzfeed generation. What the film does is produce a work that calls upon equal parts “The Twilight Zone” and “Cabin in the Woods”. R.L. Stine is the main character, as Jack Black gives the writer a sense of cinematic life while trying to maintain the monsters he creates. Only books can trap them, so Stine has to team up with neighborhood kids to find ways to bind the creatures back to the printed page.
Sporting kid friendly monster design and intriguing setups, the film never dips in the juvenile and insulting. This is the kind of kid movie that everyone remembers watching, when they actually watched 90% of the other kind of schlock. Parents and kids should take the film to heart and just be glad that they have a kid friendly quality Halloween film. Also, Jillian Bell is practically the MVP of two seasonal films this year.
RELEASE DATE: 11/16/2015
