These days when the studios are cutting together trailers to promote their upcoming films, I feel one of the number one complaints people have is that the trailer gives too much away, so why bother shelling out the cash to see it on the big screen?  When it comes to the trailer for Bad times at the El Royale, it gives you a glimpse at what is to come, but the result is something clever and ambitious, but unfortunately feels a bit too familiar.  This is the second feature film from writer and director Drew Goddard, who first made a splash onto the screen with his hit film Cabin in the Woods.  While I enjoyed his first romp that played with many of horror’s stereotypes, I still felt the film fell a bit flat.  Unfortunately, though I enjoyed this fun little noir film he’s put together, I feel it too falls a bit flat, but mostly this is due to its 140 minute runtime.

The film opens up with a great sequence, where we get to watch as a man comes into a motel room and goes through the process of burying a bag beneath the floorboards.  It’s a long static shot that nicely sets the tone for the film we’re about to watch, and with the nice little twist at the end of the scene, we’re ready to jump into this film.  Sadly, as we are introduced to visitors at the El Royale motel, things get a bit long-winded, as it seems the sequence of just having the characters checking into their rooms will never end.  It works as setting a tone and introducing us to characters, but the problem is we spent all this time with character development just to discover no one seems to be who they claim to be.  I’m all for having twists, but this sequence just goes on for too long, and unfortunately that’s pretty much how each sequence plays out, each clever sequence stretching on for a bit too long.  This is where I understand where people draw their comparisons to Quentin Tarantino, only Tarantino can make long talkie sequences crackle with humor, dread, and cool all at once, and Goddard just can’t pull it off.

When I was in elementary school, R..L. Stine was the author all the kids were reading.  For me Goosebumps was sort of a gateway that opened me up to horror, and I’ve been a bit obsessed with the genre ever since.  If you were a kid of the 80’s, I don’t think it’s possible for you to not know who R..L. Stine is. Even if you somehow never managed to read one of his books, there was also the successful TV series that came out in the early 90’s.  For years I would have said Stine would always be the most successful writer for kids. Well, that all changed once a certain wizard hit the scene and changed pop culture.  So when they announced that there would be a live action Goosebumps film, I was surprised, but I was curious what it would be like. Could his stories still entertain the masses?  I had fun with the first film, and when it was done, it struck me how these kinds of films simply just are not made any more, films the whole family can enjoy but are targeted at younger kids.  Sure, there are the superhero films, but those are more for the teens, and let’s face it, the millions of adults who grew up reading comics.  But what happened to the kids-in-peril films that were huge in the 80’s and just seemed to vanish with time?  Goosebumps seems to be the franchise that has jumped on the 80’s throwback bandwagon, but has wisely targeted not just those looking for a little nostalgic flashback, but also younger kids. I’m talking the 11-and-under crowd, and I think this is a great thing.

The sequel welcomes us to the town of Wardenclyffe, where the town’s biggest claim to fame is being the home of one of Nikola Tesla’s inventions.  As it goes with most horror tales, this is a quiet and quaint little town, but we all know that it won’t be for much longer.  Sarah (Madison Iseman) is a bit overwhelmed, working on an essay she needs to complete to send in to Columbia University, and in a way this is kind of a strange setup, because though she’s the first character we meet, I wouldn’t say she’s the star of the film.  The real stars of this film would be her younger brother, Sonny (Jeremy Ray Taylor) and his best friend, Sam (Caleel Harris).  The two are setting up their own company, “Junk Brothers”, where their hope is to make money and find some cool stuff along the way.  It just so happens their first customer takes them to the former home of R..L. Stine, and the house has missed more than its fair share of spring cleanings.  It’s while they are cleaning Sonny stumbles across a book that has been hidden away for decades, one that has a lock on it (for those who saw the first film, you already know about the kind of trouble this book will bring), and once the boys open it, they are surprised by a ventriloquist dummy, the infamous Slappy.