Paul Magne Haakonsen Haven't the vampire theme been used enough in the Scooby-Doo universe? Or maybe it is just me...Regardless, "Scooby-Doo! And the Legend of the Vampire" turned out to be just another assembly line produced Scooby-Doo movie. You know, the ones that follow the very original Hanna-Barbera formula to the point. So you know what will happen here before it happens, and you know exactly how the movie will end.With that being said, aren't all Scooby-Doo movies essentially so? Yes, you are right. However, some of the animated movies do manage to distinct themselves from the rest of them, either with the storyline or with the "monsters" that the gang is chasing (and being chased by) after.This time the Mystery Gang has traveled to Australia where they investigate the mysterious disappearances at a music festival. Here they come face to face with the grim Yowie Yahoo creature.Right, nothing new or innovative here. It just runs a bit too much on autopilot here for this 2003 animated movie.However, I will say that I did find some amusement in the musicians and their costumes. But it was hardly enough to make up for the rest of the mundane experience that the animated movie turned out to be for me.The voice acting is very important for an animated movie to work with the audience, and "Scooby-Doo! And the Legend of the Vampire" had some good enough talents, although some of the more familiar voices were missing. It is always pleasing to have the voice of Frank Welker in a Scooby-Doo animated movie.My six year old son enjoyed "Scooby-Doo! And the Legend of the Vampire" well enough. I, however, found it to be lacking the fun and energy of many of the other Scooby-Doo animated movies. And as such, then my final rating of "Scooby-Doo! And the Legend of the Vampire" is a mediocre five out of ten stars.

gamer_slate After watching this movie I thought it was good. It could have been better but it was not horrible unlike some other stuff tagged as "Scooby Doo".The Good: The plot was good (After Mystery Inc arrived at Vampire Rock) And it makes sense.The return of Casey Kasem voicing Shaggy was great.Seeing The Hex Girls as a continuing set of characters was also good (Despite their music being mellow)The use of the classic sound effects and old music was great.It plays like an old Scooby Doo cartoon with a few more modern elements.The OK or bad: The music (Except for a select few parts) Was disappointing.Although I enjoyed seeing the gang wearing their old clothes it doesn't make sense. This takes place after "The Witch's Ghost" Where they didn't all wear their old clothes. It doesn't make much sense why Fred and Daphne would switch to their old style clothing.In all this is a good Scooby Doo movie. It pays its dues to the original show and I would definitely recommend it to any fans of the original series and anyone who wants to watch a good Scooby Doo movie with their kids.

Rebochan Having enjoyed the last several direct-to-video installments of the Scooby Doo franchise, I have always been impressed by the fact that the writers were keen on what made the original series work and how to translate that to film. Oh sure, it was always rather corny entertainment, but you're not expecting high art from Scooby. You're expecting FUN.And that was what I wanted from this outing, but I was rather disappointed overall. As nice as it was to see the living members of the original cast together again, the writing seemed a little stale. The in-jokes were so thick where they became tiresome by the time the credits rolled. The situations concocted for the cast frequently felt like padding instead of entertainment. Though the real kicker is the fact the conclusion managed to be too unbelievable even by Scooby Doo standards. After the more outrageous events that have transpired, the solution to the mystery of the Yowie Yahooie is far too dull, especially considering the supernatural events the last several films ended with. While it's nice to see the film end in step with the original series (proving the supernatural to be something much more mundane), it feels as though the balance isn't even enough between the supernatural facade and the reality.However, this installment is not a total loss. Not all the in-jokes are a waste (especially one at Fred's expense when the gang is set to investigate a trailer). The riffs on various genres of music (in particular the KISS-inspired vampires) were appreciated, as was the reappearence of the Hex Girls from the second film (though they've lost a lot of their character now that they're not suspects). The hideously out of date manager inspired quite a few laughs as well.Unfortunately, this does not take away the rather empty feeling at the end of the film. With a new series running, it's of course possinble this was more of a pilot for than a continuation of the previous films, but it's hoped this is really more of an anomaly in the series of movies and not a trend, lest we return to the likes of the franchise-toppling "Scooby Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf".

DarthBill Voice actor Frank Welker is to voice acting what Lon Chaney & Lon Chaney Jr. were to acting through layers of makeup. But while Frank has done just about everything from people to animals to special creature vocalizations to killer robots (he voiced 13 of the original Decepticons on "Transformers"), to some people Frank will ALWAYS be the voice of Fred from "Scooby-Doo". But for some reason, Frank has been pulling double duty lately as both Fred and Scooby, who was previously voiced by Scott Innes, who got the job after the original voice of Scooby, Don Messick, died. Frank's still a good Fred, but despite his considerable vocal talent, his Scooby is something of a disappointment: he never quite captures Don's Scooby pitch the way Scott did and for the most part his Scooby sounds too much like Fred. Which is strange considering that Frank's been with Scooby from the beginning. That's just one of the dis-pleasures of this entry.The gang heads down under for vacation and ends up investigating the goings on at a rock festival which leads to a group of alleged vampires. Though colorfully drawn and full of gags, it never reaches the height of "Zombie Island", "Witch's Ghost", "Alien Invaders" and even the original show itself. The best bit is probably Fred carrying the whole gang across a rope bridge. Velma also sings with the voice of Jennifer Love Hewitt.Still, it's nice to have the old crew back together - Nicole Jaffe as Velma, Heather North as Daphne (though technically Daphne #2) and Casey Kasem as Shaggy (who was absent from the previous entries). The "commentary" by Fred, Shaggy and Scooby is mildly amusing.