HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA

Hotel Transylvania is a fast-paced and surprisingly jovial 3D animation film that manages to retain the wide-eyed naïvety we recognise from classic children’s films, rather than the darker, more ironic approaches we’ve witnessed of late. It swoops in on the infamous Count Dracula (voiced by Adam Sandler), his high-end resort for monsters, and an improbable story of coming-of-age in the face of parental protectiveness and fear of the unknown. When a lone human backpacker (Andy Samberg) wanders in and falls for the Count’s 118-year-old daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez), Drac and his gang of unlikelies have to grapple with an unravelling of the status quo and the scary truth that these days monsters are more afraid of humans.

A lively film for kids but it may lack the depth to captivate an adult animation enthusiast. (IB) ***