Movie Info
Movie Name: Transylvania 6-5000
Studio: Balcor Film Investors
Genre(s): Horror/Comedy
Release Date(s): November 8, 1985
MPAA Rating: PG
I’m keeping a low profile
Jack Harrison (Jeff Goldblum) and Gil Turner (Ed Begley Jr.) are reporters at the tabloid The Sensation and have been handed an assignment by their editor Mac Turner (Norman Fell) to investigate the video of a Frankenstein Monster in Transylvania. The mayor of Transylvania Lepescu (Jeffrey Jones) and Inspector Percek (Božidar Smiljanić) are trying to change the image of the region, and Jack and Gil could spell trouble for their plans. Jack and Gil learn that the video that they believe was fake could only be the tip of the iceberg.
Written and directed by Rudy De Luca, Transylvania 6-5000 is a horror comedy. The movie was released to negative reviews but performed well.
I remember Transylvania 6-5000 being released and even as a kid who liked horror movies, I didn’t want to see it. The concept was goofy and the comedy was really lame. Though the movie gained a bit of a cult following, it still isn’t very good.
I’m wacky!
The movie feels like a real throwback to movies like Abbott and Costello. The story has the “monsters” being rather human and all of it being a wacky comedy. The problem with the movie is that the pacing is all over. The movie is far too long, there are too many characters, and the subplots add little to the film.
The Abbott and Costello routine only works if there is good chemistry between the characters. In that set-up, you generally have a straight man and a comic role…neither Goldblum nor Begley Jr. really fall into either category, and the play off each other is pretty weak. The movie is loaded with celebrities including Carol Kane, Joseph Bologna, Geena Davis, Michael Richards (in a pre-Kramer, but still very Kramer role), John Byner, Norman Fell, and Donald Gibb (aka Ogre from Revenge of the Nerds). The cast unfortunately is stuck with a bad script.
Mad scientist? Check!
The movie also looks cheap. Like the older movies it resembles, the costumes and sets are weak, but unlike those movies, the film is modern and in color. If the film had been stylized in black-and-white, it probably would have looked better and it could have gotten the ideas across.
Transylvania 6-5000 is a tedious film. For a horror comedy, it lacks laughs, and the hour and a half runtime still seem too long. Fans of ’80s film might enjoy the kitschiness of the movie, but for the most part it isn’t worth even seeking out. Don’t pick up the phone if you get a call from Transylvania 6-5000.
