The Addams Family review – Blu-Ray review

January 21, 2020January 21, 2020 Jeffrey Lyles 0 Comments Allison Janney, Bette Midler, Charlize Theron, Chloe Grace Moretz, Finn Wolfhard, Nick Kroll, Oscar Isaac, Snoop Dogg, The Addams Family

There’s clearly something special with The Addams Family. It’s one of those properties that works no matter the format whether a cartoon, TV series, movie or its latest iteration an animated movie that’s worthy of two snaps up.

The character designs might be jarring to some familiar with the characters from the TV show and live-action movie starring Raul Julia and Angelica Huston. They are far more in keeping with the original designs from Charles Addams’ 1938 comic strip.

This is less an origin story on the family and more the start of their re-entry into society. Gomez (Oscar Isaac, Triple Frontier) and Morticia (Charlize Theron, Bombshell) have made a home out of an isolated deserted insane asylum with their children Wednesday (Chloe Grace Moretz, The Equalizer) and Puglsey (Finn Wolfhard, It: Chapter Two), butler Lurch, Uncle Fester (Nick Kroll), Grandma (Bette Midler) and the disembodied head Thing. Listen closely for the fun stunt casting of Snoop Dogg as cousin It.

Screenwriters Pamela Pettler (Monster House) and Matt Lieberman (The Christmas Chronicles) capture the spirit of the source material with social misfits that have no idea they don’t fit into society while ironically being completely welcoming to any stranger they meet.

If anything the script is a bit too ambitious for an 86-minute movie with three subplots that probably could have been the basis for three movies. It gives all of the characters moments in the spotlight, but is focused less on Gomez and Morticia and more their children. Chalk that up to the animated format, which would be more compelling to a new generation of younger Addams Family fans than their parents or grandparents.

Wednesday and Pugsley both have to deal with cases of being forced to be something they’re not with unintended pressure from their parents. This is mirrored in the main plot with home makeover reality star Margaux Needler (Allison Janney, Bombshell), the designer of the pristine community Assimilation, who definitely doesn’t think the Addams fit in. The script cleverly mocks the sheep-like mentality of social media and the corrosive need to fit in with the loudest voices in the room/online.

Directors Greg Tiernan (God of War in game cinematics) and Conrad Vernon (Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted) do a wonderful job with animation.

This new spin on the property should prove enticing enough to win over new fans while also staying true to the source material for longtime fans. With a sequel set for 2021 there’s plenty of reasons to be excited for this fun revival.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Special Features

The set includes seven bonus features:

Deleted and Extended Scenes
Welcome to the Family – an introduction of the various characters of the family
Charades with Thing – an interactive game with the smallest member of the family
Life of a Scene – a breakdown of how scenes are created from concept to finish
Addams family Throwback – a look back at Charles Addams’ original concept and how it was incorporated into this movie
Haunted Heart Lyric Video by Christina Aguilera
My Family Lyric Video by Migos, Karol G, Rock Magia and Snoop Dogg

Video/Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray 1080p transfer looks incredible with strong details. The Addams Family requires a large amount of blacks, but right down to suit texture everything comes out clean. Check out the mold effects on an aged piece of bread for an exceptional look at the video quality. With a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Master Audio, the soundtrack is also high quality. You’ll appreciate this on your full home audio systems.