‘ Every story ever told can be broken down into three parts. The beginning. The middle. And the twist…’
I’ve written extensively before about horror writers James Herbert and Stephen King. Too much some have said. Surprisingly, however, I’ve never explored the book series that first launched my love of horror fiction. The Goosebumps books by horror icon R.L. Stine are still a gateway drug for pre-teens looking to dip their toe in the rancid waters of horror fiction and I devoured them when the book fair used to come to my primary school. I still remember the glossy covers and stand-out titles (Say Cheese and Die!, Night of the Living Dummy, Piano Lessons Can Be Murder etc etc) and while I’ve never revisited them as an adult, they will always hold a special place in my dark heart…
After languishing in development hell since George A. Romero was attached to direct in the ’90s, Goosebumps was finally unleashed in 2015 through director Rob Letterman and writer Darren Lemke. Jack Black plays Stine, Dylan Minnette is Stine’s well-meaning neighbour Zach, Odeya Rush portrays Stine’s daughter Hannah with the supporting cast rounded out by Jillian Bell, Amy Ryan and Ken Marino. The premise is simple. The monsters from Stine’s stories have escaped the pages of his books and are attacking the good people of small-town America. It’s an ingenious solution to the problem of which Goosebumps novel to adapt… just adapt all of them instead.
Jack Black is perfect for this kind of role. See also School of Rock and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. He’s funny without being over-the-top and annoying, a trait shared by his co-star Ryan Lee who delivers a winning performance as Zach’s nerdy sidekick Champ (short for ‘Champion’).
Goosebumps captures the round-the-campfire charm that made the novels so successful – a surprise success.
