The Addams Family

Synopsis of Movie

“Don’t torture yourself, Gomez. That’s my job.”

The creepy, kooky, mysterious and spooky Addams Family moved from the small to the big screen in 1991, bringing macabre delight to audiences around the world. The Addams Family actually owed more to Charles Addams' original New Yorker cartoons than the 1960’s TV series, a fact made clear in the opening scene—lifted directly from an Addams cartoon—in which the family prepares to dump boiling oil on a group of Christmas carolers.

The Addamses are a terribly unhappy lot, and they couldn’t be happier about it. Their company loves misery—everything from a stretch on the rack to a nice electrocution—and every member of the family is in on the act. Vibrant swordsman Gomez and pale-skinned vamp Morticia are the heads of household, and the rest of the family includes children Puggsley and Wednesday, lurching butler Lurch, witchy Grandma and a disembodied hand called Thing. The only thing missing from their creepy Gothic mansion is Gomez’s long-lost brother, Fester, who disappeared 25 years ago after the brothers had a falling out.

Enter Tully Alford, the Addams’ scheming lawyer, who knows that the Addams mansion holds a vast fortune but doesn’t know how to find it. Alford hooks up with con woman Abigail Craven, whose son Gordon is a dead ringer for Fester—bald head, tubby frame, black eye sockets and all. Posing as the German Dr. Pinder-Schloss, Abigail introduces Gordon as an amnesiac Fester, arriving at the climax of an Addams family séance.

Gomez couldn’t be happier, but little deadpan Wednesday is suspicious. Through extended family parties and other tortures, Gordon/Fester learns what it means to be an Addams, but Abigail is tired of waiting for the fortune. Through Alford’s legal wrangling, Gomez and family are kicked out into the “real” world, leaving the crooks to scour the mansion for the loot. But Gordon/Fester is starting to believe he may really belong with the Addamses.

Macabre authenticity was part of the key to this film’s highly successful run in theaters. First-time director Barry Sonnenfeld (Men in Black, Wild Wild West) and his team of artists constructed a believable, live-action version of Charles Addams’ world, down to every bone-chilling detail. The only non-Addams touch was M.C. Hammer’s “Addams Groove” theme song, which nonetheless helped drive soundtrack sales.

The Addams Family also benefited from a cast that included Raul Julia, Anjelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd and an emerging Christina Ricci in a starmaking performance as Wednesday. The film was a major holiday hit, leading to a Saturday morning Addams Family cartoon series in 1992, 1993’s theatrical sequel Addams Family Values, and a direct-to-video sequel in 1998, Addams Family Reunion.

Movie Release History

1991 - The Addams Family
1993 - Addams Family Values

Movie Sub Categories

live-action
comedy
horror

Movie Studio

Orion, Paramount

Cast

Morticia Addams Anjelica Huston
Gomez Addams Raul Julia
Uncle Fester Addams Christopher Lloyd
Abigail Craven Elizabeth Wilson
Wednesday Addams Christina Ricci
Grandma  Judith Malina
Tully Alford  Dan Hedaya
Lurch  Carel Struycken
Judge Womack  Paul Benedict
Thing Christopher Hart
Margaret Alford/Margaret Addams Dana Ivey
Pugsley Addams Jimmy Workman
Cousin Itt John Franklin
Digit Addams Tony Azito
Dexter Addams Douglas Brian Martin
Donald Addams Steven M. Martin
Cousin Ophelia Addams Allegra Kent
Slosh Addams Richard Korthaze
Lumpy Addams Ryan Holihan
Flora Amor Maureen Sue Levin
Fauna Amor Darlene Levin
Employment Agent Kate McGregor-Stewart
Susan Firkins Lela Ivey
Little Tully Whitby Hertford
Lois Addams Patty Maloney
Swedish Blonde  Victoria Hall
Pre-Teen Gomez Jimmy Ross
Pre-Teen Fester Ryan Anderson
Teenage Gomez Daniel Pikus
Teenage Fester Michael Hittesdorf
Teenage Flora Lauren Walker
Teenage Fauna Valeri Walker
Girl Scout Mercedes McNab
Long Arm Addams Joe Zimmerman
Fingers Addams  Steve Welles
One-Armed Bass Player Eugene M. Jackson
Snake Charmer Richard Tanner
Conductor Marc Shaiman
Juggler Jonathan Wee
Juggler Owen Morse
Sally Jessy Raphael Herself

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