Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy (2014) Reviews

• Scooby Doo meets Frankenstein in a tale of spooky fun!

  TheLittleSongbird2014-08-29

  As a huge Scooby Doo fan since forever, Scooby Doo! Frankencreepy as well as one of the most unique Scooby Doo films, it is one of the most entertaining and the darkest since Zombie Island. It's not quite one of the best like Zombie Island, Witch's Ghost, Goblin King and Big Top Scooby Doo but it is a long way from the bottom(for me it's Monster of Mexico), ranking the film it does compare favourably. Unfortunately, as well as being the unique, entertaining and dark it is probably the most controversial Scooby Doo film with the allegations against it of fat/body shaming in a negative way once Daphne is cursed. While it is understandable as to why people would think that, to me the film is unfairly criticised for it and the allegations, some may be offended and others will say that it is not that damaging(personally it's the latter), can easily be argued against. Nobody says anything really mean to her in the film, in fact they especially Fred are accepting to how she looks and love her the way she is(in a way that didn't come across as false), and Daphne at least acknowledges that it's a problem(it would have been much more offensive I feel if she was in denial about it). Sure she does look bigger than a size 8 but I took that as mirroring how it was part of Daphne's imagination and that she saw herself as bigger than she actually was especially when compared to usual(which is common in people who like Daphne constantly worry about how they look). One Amazon reviewer says that the film does address the idea of the line between being comfortable with your weight and being in denial that it's unhealthy being blurred, and I certainly agree with that. Weight is a very sensitive issue and along with disabilities shows people at their most prejudicial, and the film did their best handling it. Again this paragraph was not intended to discredit anybody's opinion, it's just my take. Putting all that aside there is not much at all that is wrong with Scooby Doo! Frankencreepy. From personal opinion it did feel rushed in places, with a constantly moving back and forth bounce pace, the opening was a tad jumbled, and the final solution has too much going on with the feeling of more than one ending rolled into one, a similar problem I had with Stage Fright. But the animation is excellent with colours that are colourful and rich in atmosphere, loved the mix of classic Scooby Doo and the What's New Scooby Doo? style. The camera shots are interesting and inventive, unlike any technique you find in any other Scooby Doo film, though they occasionally interrupt the flow. The music is both atmospheric and groovy and the dialogue crackles with energy with the endearingly goofy jokes having that classic Scooby Doo vibe while keeping things current. The story always engages and is very eventful with a real attempt to not make things too convoluted and not have loose ends, it also never feels predictable or obvious with the revelations being a complete surprise to me. What was particularly good about Scooby Doo! Frankencreepy was its merging of classic Scooby Doo and contemporary Scooby Doo. Anybody who sees this film will really enjoy the classic Gothic horror elements it has; There is the Frankenstein influence, but there are the spooky castles, a hunch-backed assistant, a creepy house-keeper and a ghost in a very characteristic Scooby Doo fashion. There is some violence, more than usual for Scooby Doo, with explosions, fires, chases, Velma with a chainsaw and axe, close calls and fights but not to the extent where it's scary or sadistic. The characters drive the film really well and shine with their quirks and individualities, their back-stories intriguing. Their personalities are fresh but not once seeming too out of character. Velma is the most interesting and likable she has been in quite some time and not annoying like she was in Mask of the Blue Falcon(which is still one of the better Scooby films) and could be in Mystery Incorporated. Scooby and Shaggy are still as lovable as they ever were and their friendship still charms. The villains have a real creepiness especially the one who is eerily reminiscent of Old Iron Face from The Scooby Doo Show. The voice acting is terrific. No big names, just veteran voice actors(Frank Welker being the longest-serving, having voiced Fred since the very beginning 45 years ago) filling their roles perfectly, since Matthew Lillard has been voicing Shaggy he has been a worthy replacement for Casey Kasem(if not quite as good, Kasem WAS Shaggy). Scooby Doo fans will also enjoy the additions on the DVD of the Scooby Doo Where Are You? episodes A Gaggle of Galloping Ghosts and To Switch a Witch, two of the better episodes of that series. All in all, a very entertaining Scooby Doo film with plenty of spooky fun to be had. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox

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• Changes things up a little

  ersinkdotcom2014-08-22

  Everyone's favorite canine mystery solver returns for his 22nd direct- to-video adventure with "Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy." You'd think he and the Mystery Incorporated Gang would be ready to retire after such a long and satisfying career. However, they continue to make their way around the world in their trusty Mystery Machine seeking out one crime caper after the next. Velma discovers she's inherited a cursed castle from her great-great uncle Doctor Von Dinkenstein. After much coaxing, the team talks her into claiming her birthright in Transylvania… Pennsylvania. They arrive and discover the dark secret Velma has kept hidden from them all these years. I was surprised at the new tone Director Paul McEvoy and Writer Jim Krieg took "Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy" in. Most of the direct-to-video entries in the franchise have the same feeling and look to them. Here we have very different "camera" angles (or whatever you call cinematography when it's referred to in animation) being explored. Whether or not you like them, it's still refreshing that the producers and filmmakers are trying to change things up a little.

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• An Honest Review

  generationofswine2017-04-01

  On one hand it was boring.... But on the other hand, Transylvania, Pennsylvania is sort of a classic Scooby location, at least in spirit, so there is that attempt to appeal to the old Scooby Fans. And the towns people were a great source of humor, especially their exchanges with Velma's family, so again, there is that working out for it. And the plot twisted enough to seem like a Classic Scooby cartoon. the downside is, few of the jokes really stuck and the songs were so-so. The humor just wasn't there to save it and with Scooby, the movies can't be sold on plot alone, people are fans because they are kid-scary and funny at the same time. Frankencreepy just wasn't really funny.

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• Self-aware enough to make fun of itself, while still being respectful to the franchise

  jordanlikesbirds2019-03-11

  I've always been a fan of Scooby-Doo. I know a lot of people prefer when the series goes dark, meta or more mature (like Zombie Island or Mystery Inc), but I always preferred the more light-hearted adventures in colorful locations, and this film hits those hit all the high points for me. First of all, the editing and humor in this film hit me by surprise. A ton of blink-and-you'll miss it moments, and some of the gags had me in stitches. I love how the film kept building on the gags and jokes without making them stale (something future films picked up on, but didn't do as much as this one). The film also had a ton of lightning fast edit scenes which I enjoyed but felt they were a bit out of place. Overall, the film is a lot more gag-based than some Scooby-Doo films but still manages to have a fairly foreboding atmosphere. The animation was also really cool. It felt a bit cheap in places, using fairly low-quality CGI for backgrounds, but it set the moon and looked really good all-throughout. A ton better than the lackluster looking 2000s films. I didn't like the animation as good as the anime-styled 90s films, but it's different and still really nice. What also took me by surprise was the sheer villainy of the bad guys. Scooby-Doo villains have rarely ever been as bloodthirsty as these guys, who attempted to straight up murder Mystery Inc in various ways. It was kind of cool in a twisted way. The villains didn't just feel like a mystery for the gang to solve, but legitimate threats that the gang needed to put to justice. Overall, the gang felt a lot more heroic in this film, since they weren't just solving a mystery but liberating a small town from a bunch of maniacs who took over. The characterization of the characters were also a real treat. The film carried the fairly new tradition of making Fred into more of a technically-minded dork (like Velma but more engineering than science) with a very animated personality. This has its strengths and weaknesses of course. On one hand, it makes Freddy a lot more interesting of a character with his own inner-personal demons to overthrow in his character arc, but it also takes away some of the credibility he had as a leader. Daphne instead becomes more of the straight-man type figure this time around. Though still vain and fashion-centric, she's much more down-to-earth than anyone else in Mystery Inc. Everyone else is more-or-less how you'd expect, which is always a treat. To sum things up, this film was an utter treat. I loved the beginning, middle and end of it. It might even be my favorite Scooby-Doo movie yet.

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• Enjoyable ride

  ruchirpathak_it212019-01-29

  Watched another SCOOBY-DOO direct-to-video movie this one is 23rd in franchise (out of total 32movies) and released in 2014, named SCOOBY-DOO FRANKENCREEPY, and my 5th movie. I love scooby-doo animated series, alongwith many others like Courage, Dexter, Shaun the Sheep and Disney. This movie is a good one, as sticking to franchise's central theme, Scooby Doo and team were asked to go to Velma's ancestral house in Transylvania Pennsylvania since Velma's uncle died and left her a big property but villagers didn't liked them due to her uncle's monstrous activity (he built a monster) and now they say that the uncle's ghost is hunting the town. The mystery is well arranged and a better mystery than other movies I watched, also I found a different treatment to this movie, fast-cut-put together edited scenes like watching a fast go-through the happenings or flashbacks. I rate 4/5.

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