Munster, Go Home!

This film appeared at the height of the Swinging London movement of the mid-Sixties, when even Batman made a televised visit to Britain. A cross section of British funnymen came aboard to welcome America's improbably sweet family of ghouls to the old country. (And never mind that the name "Munster" is Irish and not English).

Fred Gwynne never looked back after making this final appearance as Frankenstein's monster, so bitter was he at the lingering pain performing the role caused him. It's a shame, because he was never better than in this lightweight role of goofy old Herman.

As he was in "Car 54", Al Lewis is Gwynne's sidekick, gleefully gnawing on the scenery as an over-the-top sendup of Dracula. Frankenstein vs. Dracula sounds like one of those high-concept films only the hard core will watch, but these two made it work.

I saw this film in the theater during its first run and continue to enjoy it on its occasional TV appearances. Often these are during the run-up to Halloween, when "Munster Go Home" acts as an antidote to the depressing run of horror films.

After appearing in 57 of 70 television episodes as Marilyn Munster one would think Pat Priest would have been included in The Munster's FIRST feature length film. There was some lame excuse that she was too old, even though the film was released a year after the series' last episode. Debbie Watson gave a good performance in MGH, but I had a difficult time excepting her as part of the Munster clan.

This, however, did not detract from the film that Munster Charm that came to us for two wonderful seasons on The Munsters. I still loved the film in all its brilliant color. I've just purchased the First Season episodes on DVD and am very saddened and surprised to learn Munster Go Home, the DVD version, is currently out out of print. Munster Go Home is as enjoyable as the series and should be offered to all Munster fans of all ages to enjoy.

As a kid I loved the TV series "The Munsters", but don't ask me to choose between either "The Munsters" or "The Adam's Family". Both were staples of my childhood - watching reruns on the TV with my parents and sister. Now the films were a different story, as my memory of them were hazy at best. So it was like going in fresh.

Herman and his kooky family made their big-screen debut in a spin-off from the television series, "Munster, Go Home!". This sees the loveable family heading to England (studio back lot stand-ins) for an inheritance. However they face stiff opposition from their English cousins who will do anything to stop them from gaining the title of Lord Munster. As expected there are whacky hi-jinks, smarting one-liners and running gags around the stranger-than-life characters. From Herman's clueless actions to Lily trying to keep the family out of mischief and grandpa always finding himself in trouble with his clumsy experiments. In what feels like an extended episode with a change of scenery (well, sort of) and a budget matching its TV origins, but with that in mind it stays true to what made the TV series enjoyable by steering close to the familiarity of its madcap writing making the Munsters feel right at home. There are neat little in-jokes involving superstitious townsfolk, old dark house vibes and the DRAG-U-LA! Having the original cast (with the exception of the "ugly duckling" Marilyn Nunster played by Debbie Watson) made sure the authentic twitches, costume quirks and chemistry carried over with wonderful performances by Fred Gwynne, Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis and Butch Patrick. Working across from them with perfect comic interplay are British character actors Terry-Thomas and Hermione Gingold.

Only the laugh track is missing from this movie version of the classic TV series. The absence of the canned laughter makes some of the sight gags seem like they go on a little too long, but other than that, I give the writer and director credit for doing the series justice. It's too bad that writers and directors of more recent times can't learn a few things from their predecessors about making movies out of TV shows.

This movie was filmed around the time the series was still in production, using writers and a director from the original. No doubt, that is a major advantage when trying to capture the original flavor. Some might argue that the movie should have been done in black and white, but the color is not overdone and actually adds a nice touch. With the exception of Marilyn, the original cast is there. Marilyn's role changed hands in the series anyway. Debbie Watson does fine, so it's not a significant distraction.

This is good light fare for the family looking for some classic innocent fun. Fans of the series should like it as well. It is nothing more than it tries to be - a movie version of the series with a few extras (color, location, and length.) The movie delivers on that, and I give it high marks.

Fans of this movie should also try "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken." It has nothing to do with the Munsters (other than the house facade happens to be located next door to the Munster house on the Universal Studios back-lot), but it is more classic comedy with a spooky twist. It stars Don Knotts during his heyday.

Of course it would have been impossible for the Munsters to take a trip to England in a 25-minute TV episode. So it's fun to see it finally happen. I'm not the world's biggest Munster fan, but I've been watching the series ever since I was a little kid and I do love it (a wee bit). This, in particular, is a fun adventure, in which Herman inherits an English title and goes to the Sceptred Isle to claim it, even in spite of the wishes of his greedy cousins, who want the title for themselves. Naturally, this movie has the same kind of rim shot-based gags that highlight the show ("I thought he was made in Germany"), but it also has a great deal of fun and some gags are really quite funny, not to mention the drastic culture shock that takes place when the Munsters-- who aren't even normal Americans-- take Great Britain by storm. So if you like "The Munsters," you should go ahead and give "Munster, Go Home!" a try. You won't be disappointed.