Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie Review

Fright on, fright off.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman July 28, 2014

The Monster High franchise is one of those that's not quite ubiquitous -- it's not Barbie or Hot Wheels or some other "brand" that's synonymous with youth and popular culture -- but it is universal, universal meaning that it's broken through to a number of venues to sell the name brand, including toys, books, Internet specials, and movies. Of concern here are the movies, in this case Fright On, a 46- minute feature about different monsters forced together under one academic roof and the positives and negatives that result from the merger. Of course, as always seems to be the case with this variety of entertainment, the real learning doesn't happen in the classroom but rather through life experience and the lessons learned that are encapsulated in the predicable final speech about inclusion and the strength in differences.

Monstrous.

The Monster High student body is taken aback when the Headless Headmistress makes a shocking announcement: the school is to open its doors to vampires and werewolves for a fully integrated monster school experience. When the new students arrive, integration is the last thing to happen. Cliques and core groups are less than welcoming. The vampires want things to go their way, while the werewolves have largely cordoned themselves off from the community. Pockets of integration are evident, usually in romantically aligned couples, but things aren't going as expected. Enter Mr. Van Hellscream, a man brought in to facilitate the process. As things go from bad to worse at school, a group of students begins to explore what they believe to be the ulterior motives of those involved in the integration process.

At its core, Monster High is about a variety of monsters and "people" better described as being on the periphery of monsters, like a girl who fancies herself an Egyptian princess, that are on the same plane as their human 21st century contemporaries. They're on the cutting edge of fashion, friendship, and life. The program cleverly skews everything to the appearance of monsters with hints of classic monster motifs and styles -- disproportionately sized doors, cell phones and lockers that resemble coffins, and puns aplenty -- but beyond the skewered surface lies a rather typical assemblage of teenage characters and the sort of interactions one might expect of an eclectic group.

More specifically, Fright On takes a look at integration. There are proponents and opponents to Monster High seeing the inclusion of vampires and werewolves (and, eventually, humans or "normies," the program's equivalent to "muggles"). On the way to to the final speech that champions inclusiveness, celebrates diversity, and frowns upon separation by class or characteristic, the program follows a rather standard construction that includes a bit of mystery and misdirection as the students struggle to integrate, remain in their comfortable cliques, and attempt to sort out the hows and the whys behind the integration as well as the identity of a puppet master who seems to be pulling the strings in a direction that favors his or her (or it, as the case may be in a story like this) own ends. It's superficially fun and colorful but for mature viewers watching for the story themes and drama rather than the colors and the characters, there's not much here in the realm of the original. Younger viewers, however, should enjoy the kid-friendly spectacle and probably walk away with questions that will undoubtedly lead to a viewing of several of Universal's classic monster films.

Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Color, color, color. Monster High: Fright On produces a dizzying variety of bubble gum-flavored hues that jump off the screen with a radiance befitting royalty, or at least trendy high school monsters. The film displays a broad range of shades, from hot pink to vomit green with commendable vibrance and stability across the entire palette. For something with a title that at least suggests darkness, this one is a spectacle of every shade under the rainbow, and then seemingly more. Image clarity within this 1.78:1 animated ghoul-fest is impressive. Viewers will be able to soak in every last detail on clothes, accessories, and background elements inside and outside the school. A few light jagged edges are evident, but overall Universal's Blu-ray produces clean, well-construted lines. There's practically no troublesome banding or other unwanted eyesores. Overall, a radiant transfer from Universal.

Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Monster High: Fright On's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack delivers the musical equivalent of all of those colors in the form of catchy teen pop music that doesn't include a big surround support but that does offer clear notes and effortless spacing across the front. A balanced, but hardly overpowering, low end supports. Light ambient effects are subtly impressive in crowded school hallways, but don't expect to feel surrounded by monsters and the little sonic odds and ends within their world in every shot. Dialogue is delivered firmly and accurately from the front-center portion of the stage, rounding a healthy, but hardly memorable, lossless soundtrack into form.

Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Universal's Blu-ray release of Monster High: Fright On contains no supplemental content.

Monster High: Fright On! Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Monster High: Fright On satisfies basic animation requirements. The story is sufficiently complex but easily accessible. It's populated by a variety of colorful characters who learn a few lessons along the way. Adults won't find the material challenging, and neither will all but the youngest of viewers. Fright On plays it safe, but the upset would be if it didn't. Universal's Blu-ray release of Monster High: Fright On delivers eye-popping animated video, solid lossless audio, and no supplements. Recommended only to the most ardent franchise fans.