Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018)

Director: Genndy Tartakovsky

Count Dracula and company participate in a cruise for sea-loving monsters, unaware that their boat is being commandeered by the monster-hating Van Helsing family.

I must be honest, I was never interested in seeing this film. This was due to ‘Hotel Transylvania 2’ being a slapstick mess I absolutely hated, and feared ‘Hotel Transylvania 3’ would follow the same recipe.

Fortunately, it didn’t. It still wasn’t nearly as good as the original, but this was a lot of fun, and again really funny. The monsters are going on a cruise sailing from the Bermuda Triangle – yeah, how original! The animation is bright and colorful. The premise itself has a lot more substance, although kids will still enjoy it without being lost in translation.

Compared to other animated films, there were moments when the character movements seemed unnatural – almost 2D. Stocky. I’m not sure why they opted for this look, and only certain parts of the movie. Weird. Drac’s infatuation with Erica was immature, rushed and not believable. It was just too obvious what was going on.

I loved the adventure element, and the film had a feel-good feel to it not present in the previous films. I once again enjoyed the Jonathan character, who always seems to keep everything together when every one else is falling apart. The Battle of the Music during the third act felt wrong for so many reasons. The most obvious is the fact they depict rave music as evil, and the old music as good music. It’s a shame the final battle came down to choosing the right music. And Macarena saving the day??!! Seriously??!! It almost ruined the entire film (not because of the song, but because of the reason behind it).

Ultimately, though, the film does send out a positive message, and was entertaining. ‘Hotel Transylvania 3’ was a box office success, earning $528 million on an $80 million budget, and received 11 award nominations.

Would I watch it again? Possibly.