For the uninitiated, a general overview of the plot from 2015’s family-friendly fantasy Goosebumps may have led to an eye-roll or two, with the broadest strokes of the narrative holding the potential to descend into smug, self-congratulatory self-awareness.
Adapted from the beloved books authored by R.L. Stine, the meta blockbuster saw Jack Black playing a fictionalized version of the writer – who gets more than he bargained for when his daughter and the new next door neighbor unleash the real-life monsters that have been contained within his best-selling Goosebumps series.
We’ve seen more than a handful of meta-tinged adventures come perilously close to disappearing up their own behinds, so the jury was very much out on Goosebumps. At least, until people got to see it for themselves and realized that it’s a fantastic all-ages dive into the spooky and supernatural that sacrifices such trivialities as consistent CGI and decent pacing for a frantic adventure that boasts bags of charm and no shortage of spine-tingling moments.
As we approach the most haunting holiday of the year, we can expect things that go bump in the night to make a renewed splash on streaming, which is exactly what Goosebumps has done. Per FlixPatrol, Rob Letterman’s instant staple of the annual viewing schedule has apparated on Netflix’s worldwide watch-list, and it’s even entered the Top 10 in the United Kingdom.
Of course, the real masterstroke was casting national treasure Jack Black in the lead role – which was hammered home when sequel Haunted Halloween scored substantially worse reviews, and earned over $60 million less at the box office than the opener.