MovieChat Forums > Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015) Discussion > Hotel Transylvania 2 Decent but mild com...

Hotel Transylvania 2 Decent but mild complaint (Spoiler inside)


So I just saw Hotel Transylvania 2. And yes, it is funnier and more enjoyable than the first Hotel Transylvania. I just have one complaint. One little thing undermines the entire moral of the film.

The whole film is about how it doesn’t matter what you are and that those that love you will accept you. The whole film is about how even if he is human Dennis will be accepted. However Mavis gives serious consideration to moving to California and nearly does even though Dennis AND Jonathan clearly want to stay in Transylvania.

Here’s the spoiler. Toward the end of the film it’s revealed that Dennis actually is a vampire. His vampirism emerges when his best friend / possible future romantic interest, the little werewolf girl is in trouble. Here’s the problem. The whole film has this ham handed message about acceptance and how it doesn’t matter what Dennis is. Yet it does. It really, really does. As soon as things calm down he asks “Since I’m a vampire does this mean we can stay at the hotel?” And Mavis says “Yes.” Just yes. Nothing about how she might have stayed if she had just known and accepted that’s what he really wanted. This “cute” moment under cuts the entire message of the film.

I know that as an adult I’m probably over analyzing but it kind of bothers me because otherwise it’s a very sweet and funny film.

I actually don't mind Dennis becoming a vampire. That was kind of cute, especially the reason as to how. What bugged me was "Since I'm a vampire does this mean I can stay ant the hotel?" and Mavis says "Yes." So much for what he is not mattering. What he is should not have anything to do with if they stay at the hotel or not. That undermined everything!

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[deleted]

I think she was just trying to give her son a normal human childhood to survive as a human in a human world, IF he was not a vampire. Nothing to do with acceptance.

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I want my freedom FROM religion!

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I think she was just trying to give her son a normal human childhood to survive as a human in a human world, IF he was not a vampire. Nothing to do with acceptance.


But he didn't actually need that. Jonathan obviously had a job at the hotel. And The Monsters were accepting of him. He could have chosen either world (or both) as an adult.

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But even in modern context, that's very dangerous to rely on that. Most parent would want the best for their kids, she already know her kid will fit back into the hotel whenever he wants, but she is gonna give him more choices and equip him to be able to function in the real world too. When he grows up, he can choose, because he'll fit in anywhere.

But once his a vampire, then I assume, he don't even really need anything but blood to survive. It's a different world from being human.

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I want my freedom FROM religion!

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Because it's not like he has a human father or that many of the monsters often pass themselves off as human or anything...

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Drac wasn't the only one who wanted Dennis to be something he wasn't. Johnny's family, though they didn't play that big of a role, wanted him to be human. Johnny was fine with who and what his son was, and so was Mavis, but Mavis felt the need to protect him from the world, much like her father did her. She assumed he was a human and didn't give him the chance to be anything else.

Drac wanted Dennis to be a vampire, but he was pushing to hard, wanting to believe he was a vampire. He did tis for 2 reasons. 1) Most parents/grandparents want their children/grandchildren to be like them. 2) He didn't want to lose his family because then he'd be all alone. This was even addressed in the film. He knew that if Dennis was human, then Mavis, being as overprotective as she was, was going to move to a "safer" human community, and he didn't want to lose his family.

As for Dennis, no one asked him what he wanted. Drac was trying to get him to be a vampire, and Mavis was treating him like a human but being far too protective. In the end, it was Dennis' choice. Like his father, he wanted to stay at the hotel, he wanted to be a vampire. In the end, everyone got what they wanted. Drac got to keep his family together, Vlad came to accept humans, Johnny and his family got to stay at the hotel, Mavis no longer needs to be so overprotective (and thus can spend more time with her husband whom she was neglecting), Dennis got to be a vampire like he wanted (and stay at the hotel and be with Winnie), and Johnny's family came to accept monsters.

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But there you see the problem. We're told what he is doesn't matter and Drac came to accept this as did other characters but with Mavis it did matter. Him being a vampire should NOT have been the reason she relented about them staying at the hotel. Her behavior was just plain wrong and disappointing for her character and undermined the whole moral.

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I can see what you're saying, but Drac and Mavis' reasons differed. It's well known and obvious that monsters are much stronger and more durable than humans. Dennis being a human in a monster world made her very nervous, because she felt Dennis was trying to do and be something he wasn't. Him trying to fly was a prime example of this. She thought it would be best for him to be with other humans where he would fit in and wouldn't be at risk being hurt. While Drac wanted Dennis to be a vampire for more selfish reasons, she didn't care and loved him regardless. But since she thought he was human, she felt the need to protect him much more than what was necessary. I guess you can say she almost saw him being human as a bit of a handicap since he was much weaker and powerless around all these super strong monsters with various powers and abilities.

Think about it, if you had a child (and I'm just using this as an example, I mean no offense by it) that had a handicap that greatly limited what they could do, would you want them hanging around a bunch of people that were wild and reckless. Lets look at it this way (this is just off the top of my head), if a child is born blind, should they be hanging out with a bunch of people that are aways doing reckless things where the child could easily get hurt? No, especially if they tried to do these things that they couldn't. You would feel the need to protect them and want them to do their best at what they were capable of. But if the child suddenly gains their sight and was now capable of doing all these things that they couldn't before, you would no longer feel the need to protect them as much or be worried about them doing something they couldn't because they're now capable of it.

With Mavis, it was pretty much the same thing. She saw Dennis living in the monster world as something he wasn't capable of doing, especially with her father trying to prove he was a vampire, which greatly put his life in danger. It had nothing to do with not accepting what he was (unlike Drac), but of shielding him from things he just wasn't capable of. But once Dennis proved he was a vampire, he no longer had this "handicap" or inability that prevented him from being involved with the other monsters. This was essentially Dennis "recovering". If you have a broken leg, there are just things you can't do, and those you love will not want you to do them because they'll afraid you'll get hurt. But once you recover, you're loved ones will no longer worry about you getting hurt or hold you back because you're capable of these things now. That was pretty much what it was like for Mavis. She just took her overprotectiveness to the extreme. In a way, she was a lot like Marley from Finding Nemo. She didn't think there was anything "wrong" with her son, and she didn't think any less of him for being human, she just thought it was too dangerous for him and what he was capable of. But once he showed he was a vampire and fully capable of fitting in and taking care of himself, she no longer felt the need to protect him so much. Essentially, this would be the same as a parents no longer being so protective of their formerly child because they suddenly gain sight.

I do admit, her extreme overprotectiveness was a decline in her character, but some parents are just like that (mine certainly were), especially if they have a child with a disability. It doesn't mean they don't accept who they are or love them any less though. And once that disability is no longer a concern, there's no reason to worry about it.

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[deleted]

This is a message board about a movie and you ask "Why do you care?" when starting a topic about the movie. You know that's the entire purpose of these boards, right?

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