Hollywood lastly cracked the code on online game variations.

Gone are the times when John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins embarrassed themselves, and us, as these wacky plumbers circa 1993.

Movies like “Free Guy,” “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Uncharted” delivered on the field workplace by utilizing the supply materials as a information, not a crutch.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s” is an enormous step backwards.

The film based mostly on the enduring online game smash tries to be a standard-issue horror whereas additionally genuflecting to the followers.

The consequence? Neither camp might be happy.

Josh Hutcherson will get the thankless position of Mike, the safety guard assigned to the creepy Chuck E. Cheese-like store on the coronary heart of the sport/story.

He’s accountable for his younger sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), however he’s struggling to discover a good-paying job.

A sleazy counselor (Matthew Lillard of “Scream” fame) steers Mike to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, an deserted playhouse the place animatronic beasts as soon as entertained the general public. The place is abandoned, so it’s Mike’s job to make sure nobody breaks in and trashes the joint.

Straightforward cash, proper?

What if these critters got here to life and had an urge for food for destruction?

“Freddy’s” units Scott Cawthon’s online game parts in movement, however we’re given an in depth backstory of Mike’s grief over dropping his brother at an early age. We additionally meet his Aunt Jane (Mary Stuart Masterson), keen to grab custody of his sister from him.

Heady stuff, no? Why, it’s like the parents behind the movie missed an opportunity to lean into the movie’s wacky premise.

Besides that’s not fully true.

The second and third acts reveal a few of the sport’s campier parts, none of which will be accused of being, , scary.

That issues, proper?

The animatronic beasts are rendered with the suitable F/X nuance, however director Emma Tammi (“The Wind”) can’t make their presence creepy or satisfying. Plus, a mid-movie twist makes them even much less threatening, if that’s potential.

We get one visible shock value our whereas, a shadowy kill that doesn’t betray the movie’s PG:13 ranking.

The story introduces a neighborhood police officer named Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) who bonds with Mike throughout his keep at Freddy’s. Is that this a potential romance or only a approach so as to add to the potential physique depend?

This cop has a secret, however the Mike / Vanessa pairing produces few sparks.

All of it leaves “Five Nights as Freddy’s” irredeemably boring, one thing few would say concerning the supply materials. And the robots exhibit little in the way in which of persona, that means we’re caught with a number of beasts that transfer and act the identical.

The one wrinkle? A pumpkin-like creature which appears to be like cute sufficient till it pounces.

Yawn.

The screenplay, credited to Tammi together with Scott Cawthon and Seth Cuddeback, delivers some heat chuckles. Younger Rubio’s candy efficiency is one other plus, elevating the stakes at crucial occasions.

These moments get smothered by Mike’s dream-like visions that will or could not provide clues to the horrors awaiting him.

The movie seems to be set within the Nineties, a distinction which affords little texture to the proceedings. We additionally get a number of ’80s track staples, however that retro blast hardly makes it a “Wedding Singer”-style affair.

“Freddy’s” is a Halloween-themed launch that’s extra trick than deal with.

HiT or Miss: “Five Nights at Freddy’s” can’t seize the frantic glee of the online game supply materials.