Herman Munster and his ghoulish family (plus Marilyn) travel to England where the Munster family patriarch has inherited both manor and title as 'Lord Munster'. Needless to say, some of the locals have other plans and nefarious schemes are soon underway. Few people watching this film would be unfamiliar with its progenitor TV show and thus will know exactly what to expect: a lot of corny sight-gags (many of which you can see coming before the show even begins) and the standard Munster shtick (their 'opposite-world' view of life, their pity for poor Marilyn's hideous looks, their straight-faced and steadfast failure to realise that there is anything unusual about themselves). The TV show was a brief hit in the sixties (when 'camp' was ascendant), primarily (IMO) due to Fred Gwynne's and Al Lewis's talents as physical comedians. Gwynne's towering, child-like, flat-topped Herman, with his endearing laugh and expressive face (impressively so, considering the heavy make-up) was one of T. V.'s great comic characters. The other macabre family members, 1940s exotic-starlet Yvonne de Carlo as Lily and fang-toothed Butch Patrick as Eddie, are fine. Debbie Watson (a controversial replacement for Pat Priest) plays Marilyn, who serves little purpose beyond highlighting the rest of the family's strangeness (although her failure to recognise that she is the 'normal one' was part of the fun). The film features some UK character actors, including the ubiquitous Terry Thomas, Bernard Fox, Richard Dawson and Hermione Gingold, and John Carradine seems to have fun as the doddering bewhiskered butler Cruikshank. Like many teen-oriented comedies in the 1960s, there is a 'car' angle as Herman defends the family's honour in a road race against local toffs in their Ferraris, Mercedes and Jaguars, which of course are no match for Grandpa's souped-up, super-charged, coffin-bodied 'Dragula'. There is also lots of groovy 60s generic guitar-rock, including riffs on the memorable 'Munsters theme'. If you liked the TV show, you'll know exactly what to expect and probably like the movie. Plus, it's a chance to see the original denizens of 1313 Mockingbird Lane in full, un-living colour.
Review of Munster, Go Home!
