Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		2.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Blu-ray Movie Review

Mostly Ghostly...mostly.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 8, 2014

Chills...thrills...and a bunch of teenager hormones and Halloween and high school antics that don't rhyme with "chills" and "thrills" (and aren't really "scary" anyway) give shape to the mouthful title that is R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend?, a film adaptation of the R.L. Stine fright yarn of the same name. As with the book series, the film is aimed at a younger crowd, probably a few grade levels below the high school protagonists who spend the film seeking answers, battling bad guys, or desperately trying to impress the prettiest girl in school. It's an imperfect film but a suitably entertaining little scare-fest for the target audience. It's cheap and it shows with middling special effects, lower end production values, and a dull picture quality, but as far as serviceable entertainment goes younger moviegoers looking for something safely scary for the Halloween season could do much worse.

The lord of the bling.

Max Doyle (Ryan Ochoa) possesses a magical ring that keeps a powerful demon named Phears (Charlie Hewson) locked away in a local cemetery. Phears, who is acknowledged as "the most powerful dark spirit in existence," raises a spirit from the grave that he hopes will help him create a new breed of ghosts that can live among the living and render Max's powers useless. Max is helped in his quest by two friendly teenage spirits, Tara (Madison Pettis) and Nicky (Roshon Fegan), children of the man who created the ring. They help Nicky in his battle with Phears -- and in his day-to-day life -- and he, in exchange, helps them investigate their long-departed parents. As if all of that weren't enough, Max's primary concern may be his ever-growing attraction to the prettiest girl in school, Cammy (Bella Thorne). Can he save the day and get the girl, or will Phears' evil plan ruin any chance Max might have to date the girl of his dreams?

While the story can feel a little scattered and wayward it does have quite a bit of fun fiddling around with some of the unique little details of its world, but everything does at least tangentially revolve around the core plot devices which include Max's obsession with Cammy, Nicky and Tara's search for answers, and the general battles against Phears. In fact, the movie finds some of its best moments in scenes that don't necessarily drive home critical plot points, such as when Max's invisible friends give him a literal boost in a gym class rope climbing exercise that has Max stressed to, well, the max. The movie knows how to have fun and stay within its cozy limits, flirting with absurdity and irrelevancy but managing to maintain an audience friendly vibe that only becomes truly bogged down in those scenes that spend far too much time with Phears in the cemetery, which are also really the only scenes that might give parents pause before allowing their children to watch (aside from a potentially bothersome shot of a decayed corpse, there's also Phears himself, who in some ways reminds of Gargamel from The Smurfs but who is much physically scarier and also much less funny). Yet the movie generally charms, perhaps more so in the eyes of a younger viewer but there's enough mindless fun and spirited (literally and figuratively) shenanigans to keep the whole family mostly entertained... mostly.

The film shines brightest when its cast is having fun, which is thankfully for the majority of the breezy 90-some-minute runtime. Ryan Ochoa really digs into the lead role, obviously having a blast in a number of scenes that allow him to tackle both ends of several extremes, from awkward-around-the-girls geek to slick ladies man, from a Halloween "magician" helped by his invisible friends to hilariously possessed science student, from nervous wreck gym class participant to soccer field superstar. The science class possession gag is the film's finest moment, a true laugh-out-loud bright spot in a picture that's otherwise funny but not memorably so. In it, Ochoa brings out the zaniest he has to offer, which is substantial, and he nails every last bit of physical and verbal humor the scene requires. Ochoa co-stars Madison Pettis and Roshon Fegan commendably satisfy their ghostly requirements, and Bella Thorne shows a nice little transformation as she slowly grows ever more fond of Max, his shenanigans and all. R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? will likely be remembered, however, as the last feature film role for the late Joan Rivers who briefly appears to play Max's grandmother.

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend?'s transfer is a little scary. It's flat and lifeless, generally, with only sporadic occurrences of a healthier, more vibrant, more finely detailed appearance, which is typically reserved for the brightest outdoor sports scenes. Otherwise, the image is ghastly pale and devoid of fine detail, never mind the sort of extra-fine textures that give shape to the best Blu-ray presentations. Everything from skin and hair to clothes and concrete are disappointingly drab and lifeless. Max's gym teacher's camo hat is probably the single-best textured object in the film, completely obliterating everything else, including Cammy's hair, Phears' makeup, or Max's clothing lines. Environments are single dimension flat and bland. Colors are of no help. The palette is unhealthy, appearing devoid of vibrance and favoring a dullness and haziness that wipes away any trace of brilliance. Even Cammy's purple top, seen near film's start, is terribly lifeless. Worse, black levels are pale and flesh tones waver from lightly warm to sickly dull. The image does not, however, suffer from excess noise or extreme blockiness, but this is certainly a ghoulish transfer from Universal.

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? starts well and generally maintains a high level of performance. Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack produces a healthy and aggressive musical open, featuring strong instrument clarity and separation by way of a wide stage and surround presence that's impressive considering the blend of sounds, including sharp highs, deep lows, and the multiple layers that give it a welcomingly horrific flavor. Some of the heavier action effects sound a touch muddled, an example being when Max's ring is put into action, but generally the more aggressive effects are healthily potent and full. Light ambience nicely defines a few scenes with positive, immersive elements. Dialogue delivery is accurate and center-focused with quality light reverberation in a gym class rope climbing sequence.

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? contains no supplementary content. Previews do play before the film, but nothing's accessible from the main menu. In the case, buyers will find a DVD copy of the film as well as a voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy.

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? isn't destined for the cinema history books, but it's a solid enough live action "Horror"/Comedy that's relatively safe for the whole family. It neither breaks new ground nor even explores or acknowledges its potential existence, but it never feels like a total retread, either, offering some truly funny moments in the midst of an otherwise unimaginative storyline. No doubt the original Stine written work enjoys a broader scope and more intimate character details, but for a lower end straight-to-video film adaptation this works as well as can be expected. Universal's Blu-ray release of R.L. Stine's Mostly Ghostly: Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? features bland video, adequate audio, and no extras. Rent it.