Hotel Transylvania

Dracula (voice by Adam Sandler) tries to protect his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) from the murderous human race by sheltering her in his secluded hotel for vacationing monsters. Then, one day, a hiker (Andy Samberg) wanders into the lobby, locks eyes with Mavis, and it’s love at first bat (of the eyes, that is). Just what the Cineplexes of America needed: another empty-calorie animated feature that might even lead to a series of sequels, vying with Ice Age and Madagascar for the title of Worst Cartoon Franchise Ever. Five writers (Peter Baynham, Robert Smigel, Todd Durham, Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman) fail to come up with a real story or characters, just a parade of lame gags padding a passable seven-minute cartoon out to feature length. It’s inconsequential but harmless, like a box of gummy bears.