The new “Ghostbusters,” is intended to be a reboot of the “Ghostbusters” films. This time around starring Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones, and Kate McKinnon. None of which owned their characters in the first twenty minutes of the movie. Although Wiig and McCarthy are among my favorite comedic actresses, they just were not believable in their roles.
The team starts a ghost chasing business in the middle of New York city, although I never see them collect any money. Like the original, they drive around in a hearse. But this time it’s pink and white.
This time around everything is cheesy and over the top. Even the equipment, while pretty cool at times, is mostly flashing lights. The CGI is pretty terrible quite frankly, making the old graphic techniques used in the original put it to shame.
It’s worth pointing out that, of course, avid fans of the original will go in with a skeptical mindset. However, the movie does in fact build in entertainment value as the characters become a bit more believable. Yet, it remains completely slapstick in its comedic style.
It doesn’t present itself as trying to replace the original, and bringing this point home are the subtle and enjoyable cameos that pop up here and there.
While it’s best described as a slapstick comedy, this “Ghostbusters” is a fun and lighthearted movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
A cartoonish version of something loved by many, I give the “Ghostbusters” 2 out of 5 stars.
Second Review by Jeniffer Gomez-Pabon
Back in the 80s The Ghostbusters (Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson) took over the world, with a catchy soundtrack, great jokes, and amazing onscreen chemistry. The advance visual effects of the time also gave audiences one of the most entertaining films ever and it has endured as a modern classic. After years of trying to do a third film in the franchise, the series has now been rebooted with all female cast of Ghostbusters which was met with some detractors when it was first announced.
When ghost suddenly start appearing around Manhattan a team of three scientist , Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy), Erin Gilbert (Kirsten Wiig), Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon) and a subway worker Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones) form a team to try to find out the cause of the paranormal events. Naturally things are bigger than anyone can know and the team must face overwhelming odds to save the day.
Director Paul Feig has been dealing with the bad publicity (in my opinion there is not such a thing as bad publicity) since the first trailer was revealed and soon found it the most disliked trailer on YouTube. Feig has made a clever in-joke about this with a scene where Erin is reading bad reviews online about her book and Abby tells her :” You shouldn’t be reading this stuff, it is just a list of what crazy people write in the middle of the night online” and hey it is difficult to disagree.
The film has a creepy, scary opening that definitely captures your attention, and yes in my opinion the film is funny very funny, but this time it has an extra ingredient in Chris Hemsworth as Kevin. Hemsworth is playing the team’s stupid receptionist who struggles with every little task from answering the phone or making coffee. He will make you laugh and I for one will never complain about having him on the big screen. Patty Loan who joins the team and becomes a key member of the team thanks to her vast knowledge of the city and its history; she snags some of the best lines in the movie.
Kate McKinnon as the mad scientist Jillian is the break out star of the film. I love the passion she displayed when she creates nuclear weapons that can destroy the city and her admirable loyalty to Yates, the only scientist that believe in her madness.
With no surprises but always amusing, the film has plenty of cameos from the original film, but in my opinion they should have had them more involved in the plot. The films work despite not being the brilliant 1984 original film, but what are you expecting after 32 years? It is funny, entertaining and filled with good vibes, pretty decent graphics and is a great film for the summer.
3.5 of 5
Third Review by
By Jason Buck
“This is not The Greatest Song in the World, no. This is just a tribute.” -Tenacious D
The new “Ghostbusters” was a good movie, and you should go see it. You won’t be disappointed. That being said, I’m kind of going to rip on it for the rest of this review.
This was not a serious movie. I don’t know how to convey my meaning here, when I consider the original “Ghostbusters” movies to be serious movies. It was more of a cartoon. Where the original movies used practical effects in a way that makes them timeless, this movie used CGI that will look dated in 5 years. Where Slimer was a serious ghost in the original movies, albeit a silly one, he was merely a joke in this movie, as evidenced by him being joined by a “Mrs. Slimer”.
At the beginning of the movie, I struggled to believe the actresses in their characters, but as the movie continued, they won me over. Dr. Erin Gilbert (Kristen Wiig) and Dr. Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy) sort of split the straight-man/comic-relief duties of Peter (Bill Murray) and Ray (Dan Aykroyd). Dr. Jillian Holtzman (Kate McKinnon) takes up the duties of Egon (Harold Ramis), but in her own distinct, more slapstick style. Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones), is obviously meant to fill Winston’s (Ernie Hudson) shoes… which struck me as bordering on racist. Finally Kevin Beckman (Chris Hemsworth) is our replacement for Janine (Annie Potts), and they spun it backwards – Where she was clearly too smart for her stupid job, and was done up to look nerdy (and perhaps somewhat unattractive), he is here as eye-candy, but he has absolutely no intellect, and the movie plays with that until the end.
One effect that stood out to me was that the movie was letter-boxed, but then blatantly ignored the rules of letter-boxing. Any time a paranormal experience occurred, it was allowed to break out of the letter-box, and into what we expect to always be black bars.
The cameos were brilliant, and I’m not going to spoil them for you, but they also weren’t allowed to take control of the movie. The renditions of the Ghostbusters theme were new and different, but well done. It’s rare that I laugh at movies. This one got me several times.
In the end, this movie was enjoyable, and showed great reverence for the previous movies. I suspect there was an attempt at some point to conceive this follow-up as a serious endeavor, but it just wasn’t possible after all these years. So they went with goofy and over-the-top. And ultimately it pans out. This movie will make you excited about Ghostbusters, like you haven’t been in 30 years. But it will probably also make you go back and watch the originals, and realize that this is not cut from the same cloth.
I give “Ghostbusters” 4 out of 5 stars.
