Here Come the Munsters

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Here Come the Munsters
Directed by Robert Ginty
Produced by Leslie Belzberg
John Landis
Written by Bill Prady
Jim Fisher
Jim Staahl
Starring Edward Herrmann
Veronica Hamel
Christine Taylor
Robert Morse
Sean O'Bryan
Mary Woronov
Music by Michael Skloff
Cinematography Paul Maibaum
Editing by Dale Beldin
Marshall Harvey
Distributed by Universal
Fox
Release date(s) Flag of the United States October 31, 1995
Running time 129 min.
Country United States
Language English
Budget $2,500,000 US (est.)
IMDb profile

Here Come the Munsters is a made for TV movie that aired on the Fox Network in 1995. It starred Edward Herrmann, Christine Taylor, and Veronica Hamel as Lily Munster, and included cameos from the original Munsters cast members Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis, Butch Patrick, and Pat Priest. The film told the story of the Munster family's arrival in America from Transylvania.

While the movie did in some parts capture the feel of the original series, it departs from the established Munsters canon.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The Munster family is tired of being persecuted back in Transylvania, and on finding part of a letter from cousin Marilyn in California, decides to head to the United States. On arrival they find that Marilyn's father, Normann Hyde, is missing, and her Mother (Herman's sister) Elsa Hyde is in a coma. Marilyn details this in the letter but Spot burned the mail (and the letter carrier) so this comes as a surprise to the Munsters.

The family must find out what has happened to Marilyn's father, and find a way to revive Elsa. The also have to try to live in new surroundings as they try to "fit in" in America.

It turns out that Norman was trying to find a way to make his "peaches and cream" daughter, Marilyn, look a little more like the rest of the clan, but some how the experiment backfired and Norman Hyde became Brent Jekyll. This is a take on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Brent Jekyll is running for Congress and as part of his campaign is trying to get foreigners out of America (this includes the Munsters). There is a more sinister part of the story as it seems that Hyde was sabotaged and transformed into Jekyll purposely, to bring forward a politician without a past who people would listen to.

As the story unfolds, the family tries to save the day. With Herman arrested and placed in jail, Grandpa creates a replica of him from spare parts and uses it to help him escape. They flee from the scene in the Munster Koach.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Trivia

  • The movie featured cameos from the then four surviving original cast members.
  • The movie featured the Munster Koach as it was seen on the original show and The Munsters Today.
  • The Munster Mansion used in the film was also featured in several episodes of Goosebumps. It bore absolutely no resemblance to the house on the original series located at Colonial Street, Universal Studios.
  • While at a campaign event, a party guest takes a look at the Munster family and inquires if they are a member of the Green Party.
  • The opening of the movie includes footage from Universal's Frankenstein (1931 film), and a black and white intro scene, in homage to the original show.
  • The Herman headpiece worn by Edward Herrmann is cast from the same mold as the one worn by Fred Gwynne in the earliest Munsters episodes. It was too big for Gwynne and eventually replaced, but it fitted Hermann fine. The piece was originally produced for Glenn Strange's incarnation of the Monster.

[edit] Departures from traditional canon

  • In the film, Marilyn's last name is Hyde, and she is the daughter of Herman's sister, not Lily's like in the original series and The Munsters Today.
  • Grandpa uses a spell on a hearse to turn it into the The Munster Koach. This is in contradiction to the original series, and The Munsters Today, where Lily buys it as a gift for Herman.
  • Grandpa's lab is shown to be under the stairs instead of under a trap door in the livingroom like in the original series and The Munsters Today.
  • The ownership of the family house also changed in the original series and The Munsters Today it was clearly stated that the Munsters owned the house but in this version they're just house sitting for Herman's sister.

[edit] External links