ne hundred years ago, it was a time of darkness in Transylvania. Dr. Abraham Van Helsing and his team of supernatural fighters conspired to rid the world of vampires and other such monsters. But they blew it. A last-minute, ancient ceremony couldn’t keep the undead from rising out of the earth, or an indestructible amulet from sucking various inhabitants into a netherworld, or Count Dracula (Duncan Regehr) from plotting an eternal revenge.

In present day, elementary school kids Sean Crenshaw (Andre Gower) and his best pal Patrick (Robby Kiger) are once again sent to the principal’s office for disrupting class. But it’s not entirely their fault; after all, their teacher Mrs. Carlsen looks like a cat. After they’re released from a solid reprimanding, the twosome meet up with Horace (Brent Chalem) and Eugene (Michael Faustino), fellow students who are also part of their “Monster Squad” – a club that idolizes movie monsters and just can’t stop talking about all the ways to kill vampires and wolfmen and Frankenstein’s monster. Their latest gathering’s agenda is to decide whether Junior High School cool kid Rudy (Ryan Lambert) should be allowed to join the group.

Outside of the treehouse in which they conduct their business, Sean contends with less amusing responsibilities, such as babysitting his five-year-old sister (Ashley Bank), and attempting to ignore his parent’s marital discord. Meanwhile, Sean’s father, police detective Del (Stephen Macht), must work late on a strange case: the disappearance of a museum mummy, which seems to have gotten up and walked away. Other odd occurrences similarly plague the town – from a man who claims to be a werewolf to sightings of a black phantom hearse to monsters in closets. And sure enough, after deciphering the scrawling in Van Helsing’s diary – with the help of a creepy neighbor (not unlike something from “To Kill a Mockingbird”) – Sean learns that Dracula has returned to have the forces of evil take over the world, and that it’s up to the Monster Squad to stop him.

Like many of the great live-action children’s films (or family-friendly films) that incorporate lightly frightening concepts (including “The Goonies” and “Gremlins,” or even “Fright Night” and “The Sandlot”), “The Monster Squad” pits youths against mature villainy and moderately scary scenarios. And the adults are of little help, providing skepticism more than anything else. It’s always a difficult task to have children in the lead, not only because convincing child actors are rare, but also because young protagonists are prone to generating unintentional levity at inopportune times. Fortunately, the tone is consistent and the acting is entirely suitable; it’s actually a few of the supporting adult roles that provide insincerity.

For a nice touch, the film is also careful to balance thrills (including an unexpected death or two and a bit of blood) with humor. Playing along with the immaturity of the heroes, the wolfman gets kicked in the nads and the mummy gets unwrapped. Curiously, the wolfman is also able to reform himself after extreme mutilation, like an iteration of the T-1000 Terminator. Music montages, makeover sessions with Frankenstein’s monster (played by Tom Noonan), bullying, and teamwork (as well as uncommon sexual blackmail against Patrick’s older sister) similarly possess wittiness, though the finale is all action and seriousness. Thanks to Stan Winston’s monster designs, what could have been a largely schlocky endeavor gains moderate gravity, particularly with a werewolf transformation sequence and Dracula’s slimy metamorphosis into a bat. By the end, however, it’s evident that many of the ideas here are far better than the ways in which they were executed; “The Monster Squad” could have used some considerable polishing to make the most of its original, preteen-oriented adventures.

– Mike Massie