Monster House (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Monster House |
|
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
|
|
| Directed by | Gil Kenan |
| Produced by |
|
| Screenplay by |
|
| Story by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Music by | Douglas Pipes |
| Cinematography | Xavier Perez Grobet |
| Editing by |
|
| Studio |
|
| Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing |
| Release date(s) | July 21, 2006 (United States) |
| Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $75 million |
| Money made | $141.9 million |
Monster House is a fun computer-animated movie from 2006. It's a mix of comedy and horror. The film was directed by Gil Kenan and written by Dan Harmon, Rob Schrab, and Pamela Pettler. It tells the story of a neighborhood that gets scared by a house that seems to be alive. This all happens around Halloween time.
The movie features the voices of many famous actors. Some of them include Mitchel Musso, Sam Lerner, Spencer Locke, Steve Buscemi, and Maggie Gyllenhaal. The characters in the movie were animated using a special technique called motion capture. This means actors performed the scenes, and their movements were recorded and used to create the animated characters. This same technique was used in the movie The Polar Express (2004).
Monster House was made by Robert Zemeckis' company, ImageMovers, and Steven Spielberg's company, Amblin Entertainment. It came out in theaters on July 21, 2006. Critics generally liked the movie. It earned about $142 million around the world, which was a good amount compared to its $75 million budget.
Contents
What is Monster House About?
A Spooky Neighbor and a Strange House
The story begins with D.J., a 12-year-old boy. His parents leave him with his babysitter, Zee, for the weekend. D.J. loves to watch his elderly neighbor, Mr. Nebbercracker. Mr. Nebbercracker is known for scaring children away. He also takes any toys that land in his front yard.
One day, D.J.'s best friend, Chowder, loses his basketball on Nebbercracker's lawn. D.J. tries to get it back. Mr. Nebbercracker gets very angry and has a health scare. He is then taken away in an ambulance. That night, D.J. starts getting strange phone calls from the house next door. No one is on the other end.
The House Comes Alive
Zee's boyfriend, Bones, comes over later. He tells D.J. that Mr. Nebbercracker supposedly ate his wife. Bones also says Nebbercracker stole his kite when he was a kid. After Zee kicks Bones out, he sees his lost kite stuck in the house's front door. When he tries to get it, the house suddenly eats him!
D.J. and Chowder decide to investigate the house. But the house comes alive and attacks them. They quickly run away. The next morning, a schoolgirl named Jenny Bennett is selling Halloween candy. She goes to the house, but D.J. and Chowder save her just before the house can eat her too.
Police Don't Believe Them
Jenny calls the police, and Officers Landers and Lister arrive. The children try to explain that the house is alive. However, the house becomes still when adults are around. So, the officers do not believe D.J., Chowder, and Jenny.
The three friends then go to a supernatural expert named Reginald "Skull" Skulinski. Skull explains that the house is a rare type of monster. It's created when a human spirit joins with a building. He tells them the monster can only be defeated by destroying its "heart." The friends think Mr. Nebbercracker's spirit is in the house. They believe the furnace in the basement is the house's heart.
Trapped Inside the Monster House
The kids come up with a plan. They create a dummy filled with cold medicine from a pharmacy. They hope this will make the house "sick." But before they can get the dummy to the house, Officers Landers and Lister stop them. Landers finds the stolen medicine, and the officers arrest the trio.
Before the police car can leave, the house eats both officers and their car! D.J., Chowder, and Jenny are trapped inside the house. After a while, the house seems to fall asleep. The three friends start exploring it.
The Secret of Constance
In the basement, they find a special shrine. Inside, they see the body of Mr. Nebbercracker's late wife, Constance the Giantess, covered in cement. The house then attacks them again. They manage to escape by grabbing the house's uvula (the dangly part at the back of its "throat"), which makes the house "vomit" them outside.
Mr. Nebbercracker then returns, alive and well. He tells them the truth: the house is possessed by Constance's spirit. He explains that he met Constance when she was part of a circus freak show. He fell in love with her and rescued her. They got married, and he started building a house for them.
Constance's Story and Freedom
One Halloween, while Mr. Nebbercracker was building the house, two children teased Constance because of her size. She got very angry and grabbed an axe to chase them. But she tripped and fell to her death in the unfinished basement. Mr. Nebbercracker knew Constance's spirit made the house come alive. He scared everyone away to protect them from being eaten by the house.
D.J. convinces Mr. Nebbercracker that he needs to let Constance go. This makes the house very angry. It breaks free from its foundation and uses trees as arms to chase the group. Mr. Nebbercracker realizes the trouble Constance is causing. He tries to blow up the house with dynamite, but the house attacks him.
The Final Battle
D.J., Chowder, and Jenny fight the house using a backhoe loader. They lure it to a construction site. They manage to knock the house down a big slope. It smashes into pieces, and they think it's defeated. However, the house puts itself back together and keeps chasing them!
Finally, they lure the house over to a large crane. D.J. bravely throws the dynamite into the house's chimney. The house explodes, and Constance's ghost is set free. She shares one last dance with Mr. Nebbercracker before moving on to the afterlife.
Mr. Nebbercracker thanks the trio for freeing him and Constance after 45 years. That night, children in their Halloween costumes line up at the spot where the house used to be. Mr. Nebbercracker, D.J., Chowder, and Jenny give back all the toys the house had collected. D.J. and Chowder even go trick-or-treating, something they thought they were too old for earlier.
During the credits, everyone who was eaten by the house comes out of the basement. Bones finds out that Zee is now dating Skull. Officers Landers and Lister decide to "investigate" some of the trick-or-treating candy.
Who Are the Voices in Monster House?
- Mitchel Musso as Dustin James "D.J." Walters
- Sam Lerner as Charles "Chowder"
- Spencer Locke as Jennifer “Jenny” Bennett
- Steve Buscemi as Mr. Horace Nebbercracker, Constance's husband
- Maggie Gyllenhaal as Elizabeth "Zee”
- Kevin James as Senior Police Officer Landers
- Nick Cannon as Police Officer Lister
- Jon Heder as Reginald "Skull" Skulinski
- Jason Lee as Bones
- Catherine O'Hara as Mrs. Walters (credited as "Mom"), D.J.'s mother
- Fred Willard as Mr. Walters (credited as "Dad"), D.J.'s father
- Kathleen Turner as Constance Nebbercracker, Horace's wife
Monster House Video Game
A video game based on the Monster House movie was released on July 18, 2006. It was made by THQ. You could play it on several gaming systems, including the PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo DS.
See also
In Spanish: Monster House para niños
