USA TODAY International Edition
‘ Addams Family’ is an ooky, spooky rogue’s gallery
With Halloween coming, we’re being gifted with another visit from our favorite creepy, kooky, mysterious, spooky and altogether ooky clan.
The animated movie “The Addams Family” ( now in theaters) reboots the finger- snapping, horror- tinged characters that originally appeared in Charles Addams’ New Yorker cartoons and have made occasional appearances on TV, movies, Broadway and IHOP menus.
The Addamses first had everyone snapping their fingers to Lurch’s funky harpsichord beat with the 1960s TV series, and the family returned with two hit movies, 1991’ s “The Addams Family” and 1993’ s “Addams Family Values.”
The latest outing features the origins of the Addams clan, revealing how years ago, married couple Gomez ( voiced by Oscar Isaac) and Morticia ( Charlize Theron) were driven out of their home country and relocated to an abandoned New Jersey asylum.
The movie catches up with them and their kids, Wednesday ( Chloe Grace Moretz) and Pugsley ( Finn Wolfhard), as the Addamses run afoul of their neighbor, an annoying TV homeimprovement host ( Allison Janney).
In honor of the new movie, we pick our favorite Addams Family members:
John Astin’s Gomez
The fashionable and eccentric patriarch from the ’ 60s seems pretty normal in retrospect, but there’s a lovably sinister side to him to go along with his goofiness. Plus, the absolute puppy love he shows for his beloved wife ( Carolyn Jones) hits us right in the feels. Isaac’s new version seems to be patterned after Astin, and no wonder: He’s the best.
Anjelica Huston’s Morticia
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Jones made cutting the buds off roses cool back in the day, and Theron’s take isn’t too shabby. Huston is just a joy to watch though. She embraces the campiness of the role and adds a sultry darkness that’s just a wee bit dangerous yet is still family friendly.
Chloe Grace Moretz’s Wednesday
From Lisa Loring in the ’ 60s to Christina Ricci in the ’ 90s, the Addamses’ freaky daughter has always had a rebellious side. Moretz’s Wednesday takes that to a relatable level in the new movie, wanting to go to a real school – where she causes a ruckus by going Dr. Frankenstein on some dead frogs – and daring to put a little pink in her so- very- black wardrobe.
Finn Wolfhard’s Pugsley
Let’s be honest, Pugsley has never had a lot to do compared with his relatives. The filmmakers switch that up in the new movie, giving him a major story line: Although he’d rather try to blow his dad up, Pugsley instead needs to work on honing his middling saberwielding skills for an important coming- of- age ritual at the upcoming family reunion.
Jackie Coogan’s Uncle Fester
Christopher Lloyd has played everyone from Doc Brown to Judge Doom, and his ’ 90s Fester isn’t too shabby; the same could be said of Nick Kroll’s nicely weirdo version in the new movie. Yet the original dude who played Gomez’s oddball bro, Jackie Coogan, was tops as he lit up the screen with strangeness ( thanks to a light bulb in his mouth).
Ted Cassidy’s Lurch
The groaning, grunting animated butler has his own intriguing backstory in the new flick, and he’s responsible for much of the movie’s soundtrack – a monster on the keyboard, this oversize guy knows everything from Bach’s Toccata and Fugue to R. E. M.’ s “Everybody Hurts.” Still, the OG Lurch ( Ted Cassidy) had a hit song and his own ’ 60s dance craze, so he wins in a squeaker.
Snoop Dogg’s Cousin It
He was a walking, chirping carpet wearing a bowler hat in his first two iterations. Snoop Dogg voices the latest take. Enough said.