Other Titles • Monster House (2006) • Zemeckis/Spielberg Motion Capture Project • Neighbourhood Crimes & Peepers
Synopses for Monster House (2006)
1.
Although no adults will believe them, three children realize a neighbor's house is really a monster. They must find a way to stop the house and save the neighborhood.
(72 votes)
2.
Twelve-year-old DJ Walters (Mitchel Musso), who is caught in that awkward moment between childhood and the onset of puberty, has too much time on his hands and has taken it into his head that there’s something weird about old man Nebbercracker’s house across the street. Things keep disappearing into the dilapidated structure: basketballs, tricycles, toys and pets. Come to think of it, whatever happened to Mrs. Nebbercracker?
It’s the day before Halloween and DJ and his candy-friendly pal Chowder (Sam Lerner) have a run-in with Mr. Nebbercracker after their basketball wanders onto his lawn and is mysteriously swept into the house. When the house tries to swallow their new friend Jenny (Spencer Locke) and no one believes the frightened trio’s claims that the house is up to no good, it’s up to them to investigate.
They turn for advice to the only person on the planet who might even remotely understand what’s going on, the wise one they call Skull (Jon Herder), a 20-something slacker pizza chef and master of the arcade machine who once played a video game for four days straight on one single quarter, a gallon of chocolate milk and an adult diaper. “I have heard tell of man-made structures becoming possessed by a human soul,” Skull tells them.
You mean the house is alive? Yikes!
Skull tells them the only way to stop the house from gulping down everything in sight is by striking at its heart, which the kids figure out must be the perpetually-fueled furnace in the basement. They come up with what seems to be a foolproof plan — a vacuum cleaner disguised as a human dummy filled with cold medicine. The kids offer up their bait to the house, figuring that once it’s asleep, they can sneak in and put out the furnace with their squirt guns.
Their little plan goes awry, though, and when the house starts chasing them down the street — that's right, chasing them down the street! — they must join forces to once again make the neighborhood safe for trick or treaters.
(71 votes)
3.
There are countless movies about haunted houses, but first-time director Gil Kenan brings us the story of a house that is itself a monster. In CGI, voiced by Steve Buscemi, Maggie Gyllenhall, and others.
(76 votes)
4.
MONSTER HOUSE is a feat of blockbusting filmmaking--a visually stunning, witty tale that is sure to stimulate children and their parents. The film focuses on an anthropomorphic mansion, a haunted house with human characteristics that actively frightens neighborhood folks as it attempts to reign over its inhabitants. One day, a trio of intrepid youngsters, sick of being terrorized, decide to fight back. They are cutely pubescent DJ (Mitchel Musso); his fumbling, chubby friend Chowder (Sam Lerner); and smart-as-a-whip tomboy Jenny (Spencer Locke), who immediately enchants the awkward boys. The local police are no help, so DJ, Chowder, and Jenny are left to their own clever devices, which result in a series of rollicking, hilarious, and sometimes scary adventures. A cast of colorful personalities surrounds the central characters, and they are voiced by luminaries who include Catherine O'Hara, Kevin James, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kathleen Turner, Steve Buscemi, and the brilliant Fred Willard. And teen hipsters will delight in hearing the droll voice of Jon Heder (the title character of cult hit NAPOLEON DYNAMITE) as a deadbeat pizza maker nicknamed "Skull." First-time director Gil Kenan proves spirited and highly adept at mastering such a high-tech production, and followers of animation will want to pay attention to the use of new digital techniques that stray away from straightforward computer drawing. MONSTER HOUSE is executive produced by Robert Zemeckis, who helmed the innovative and sophisticated animated feature WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT? in 1988. He once again proves that family fare need not be alienating to older viewers, but can appeal to on every level from childhood and upward.
(71 votes)
5.
Columbia Pictures and executive producers Robert Zemeckis and Steven Spielberg present Monster House, an exciting and hilarious thrill-ride tale about three kids who must do battle with a mysterious house that threatens anyone who crosses its path.
Steve Buscemi, Nick Cannon, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kevin James, Jason Lee, Catherine O'Hara, Kathleen Turner and Fred Willard are among the stars lined up for Monster House. Joining them are newcomers Mitchel Musso, Sam Lerner and Spencer Locke. Steve Starkey and Jack Rapke of ImageMovers are producing with executive producer Jason Clark.
Monster House is directed by Gil Kenan, the UCLA Spotlight Award-winning director of the live-action/animation short The Lark. The film is written by Dan Harmon & Rob Schrab and Pamela Pettler. The digital animation is by Sony Pictures Imageworks.
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