When i was 12 I wanted to be Wednesday Addams. She was awesomely cool and mature, with morbid hobbies but unfortunately all we shared was an affinity for Shakespeare and the occasional torturing of our younger brother. Still, I was convinced that if she were real we would be best friends. Now that I’m all grown up and have (mostly) stopped torturing my brother, I no longer dream of going to class in a black dress and braids, but the Addams Family film and its first sequel remain among my favorites.
I recently re-watched the first one and found to my relief that it still holds up quite well.
For those of you who haven’t seen it, the film centres on the Addams Family (the clue is in the title) and its servants. Head of the family, Gomez Addams (portrayed enthusiastically by Raul Julia), has spent the last 25 years trying to contact his lost and presumed dead brother Fester. He is also madly in love with his wife Morticia (Anjelica Huston, never more beautiful, all cheekbones and red lips) and devoted father to his two kids, Wednesday (Christina Ricci so awesome here that it hurts to see her cracked-out performance on new series Pan Am, please Christina, have a sandwich, love Filmophilia) and Pugsley (Jimmy Workman, who wins the last name contest) Other members of the household include manservant/butler/gentle giant Lurch, Grandma, who mainly cooks and curses people, and Thing, a disembodied hand (very handy (hah!) for a head-massage).
The happy family dynamic is derailed when their lawyer Tully (played by total 90’s Hey It’s That Guy! Dan Hedaya) conspires with the evil Abigail Craven to fool the family into thinking her son Gordon (Christopher Lloyd basically playing a fat, bald Doc Brown. Hey, I’m not saying it’s a bad thing) is the long-lost Fester.
Initially ecstatic, hi-jinks ensue when Gomez sets about re-introducing “Fester” into the Addams family life. But as “Fester” starts bonding with the family, mounting pressure from his mother to find the family vault leads to conflicted emotions. Will Fester do the right thing? Will the villains succeed in their dastardly scheme?! WE WILL NEVER KNOW!! Except we will and they do. Well, almost.
After discovering that, as the elder brother, all of the family’s possessions belong to Fester they kick the family to the curb and set about finding the vault. Unfortunately for them the vault is well hidden and booby-trapped, so when Morticia turns up at the house to try and get some sympathy for a severely depressed Gomez (he’s watching daytime TV now, for crying out loud!) they kidnap her and try and torture the way into the vault out of her, but soon enough a re-invigorated Gomez comes to her rescue and in the ensuing fight “Fester” get’s struck by lightning and regains his memory. (SPOILER) He really was Fester the whole time! The bad guys are swiftly disposed of and everything turns back to normal. Well, their version of normal anyway.
Wednesday being awesome
Like I said earlier, the film holds up remarkably well. The set design is stunning, the score operatic and all the performances are pitch-perfect. I’m even still impressed by the special effects for Thing. It almost feels like a Tim Burton film, from back when he specialised in off-kilter black comedies and not crappy, high-tech remakes. In fact he was originally posed to direct it, before first-time director Barry Sonnenfield took over. Like most of Burton’s films, this is a film about outsiders, but as an adult viewer you realise that despite their kookiness and frequent attempted familicides, the Addams family is in fact the most functional family in the film. They love and support each other no matter what and are willing to do anything for the other family members. That’s not something that’s evident with Gordon’s overbearing mother or Tully’s unhappy marriage. I think that is one of the reasons the film, and for that matter the 60’s TV series, stands up so well. A happy, functional (in their own way) family is something we all strive for and the Addamses are so unashamedly happy (“How long has it been since we waltzed? – Oh, Gomez… hours!”) Add to that overt sexuality and borderline tasteful black humour (“He was so good with children – they never proved anything!”) and you have a film that can appeal to all ages.
At least I know I’ll continue dressing up as a homicidal maniac for Halloween (they look just like everyone else, ya know) and dream of the day I can perform Hamlet the way it SHOULD be performed (Dismembered limbs! Showers of blood!) Also, the theme tune is so catchy! Get ready to snap your fingers for days. Although it is closely followed by MC Hammer‘s none more 90’s Addams Family rap (the 90’s were the best you guys!) All together now! “They’re creepy and they’re kooky….”
I also recommend checking out the first sequel, The Addams Family Values. The Addams family goes to summer camp!
Wind in My Hair 