Ghostbusters

Linda Robinson 6/23/2021 3:57:49PM 8.4

I was determined to see this movie on opening day. Female cast, Paul Feig (a Michiganian who included a Michigan line in the film), a couple fistfuls of ridiculousity on social media. When the movie started, I was one-eyeing the screen. Waiting for it. Oh oh. Fart joke. Oh oh. Kristen Wiig still can't make her eyes look interested. Then Charles Dance shows up with his serious comic tongue stuck in his cheek to admonish Prof. Gilbert that if she is serious about tenure, she needs to find a more prestigious university recommendation. "More prestigious? Than Princeton?" Now I know the deadpan eye comic genius of Wiig, too. From that point on, I was in love with the story. Katie Dippold cowrote the film. She has a bit part as the real estate agent showing the team the 1984 movie's fire station to rent. I want more of her screenwriting. The dialogue is witty, sharp, real. While I liked the 1984 Ghostbusters, it's a buddy movie. Dudes in the treehouse with no girls allowed spelled wrong nailed to the door. Smug, chirpy, guybonics. Venkman electrocuting rivals in the lab: using paranormal research to get dates. Annie Potts drooling over Spengler. Sigourney Weaver in a diaphanous dress, draped on a parapet waiting for the Gatekeeper. The sore spots in 1984 are sprayed away in 2016 without gender disrespect. Gilbert gets to drool over the pretty doofus administrative assistant. When you see this movie, watch all the credits. Chris Hemsworth is a clearly confident actor - he dives pelvis-first into the Kevin role, and it's hilarious. I'm still searching for the creator of the titles and end credits. Excellent art. The poster? Not so much. Hemsworth needs to be behind the four leads. Geez. Casting hit a lick with Kate McKinnon as Holzmann. She is fantastic bringing Harold Ramis' genius back to life. Leslie Jones as Patty: so good, and she has some of the juiciest lines, delivered with haute sass. There are really well-placed cameos by 1984's cast, including birthing one of the movie's best lines "safety lights are for dudes." 2016 Ghostbusters is a great fun movie, and I'll watch it more than once again. One of the brilliant visuals that I was thrilled with - the stream from the proton packs tied up the ghosts. Wrapped, pinned, contained lassoed. Genius analogy for what to do with obsolete stereotype. There's a lassoed line in the film while the Ghostbusters are reading the internet reaction to their first catch. "Ain't no bitches gonna catch no ghosts." Yeah. Watch this.

talisencrw 6/23/2021 3:57:49PM 8.4

Unfortunately this has become because of political correctness and its backlash almost impossible to rate objectively. In the 2016 North American wish to either redo every successful film ever made and present every conceivable variant in the process, for what could be deemed the lack of any possible originality of ideas, I still tried to enter this with an open mind, and see this as if the two films from the 80's (which I enjoyed very much the one time I saw each of them) had never existed. I should state I saw this in 3D (which I hardly ever do), with my lady and our respective sons. I felt that it was quite funny and that the special effects were excellent. Next to 'Avatar', the use of 3D was the best I have ever seen. It's a popcorn flick well-worth seeing. Though I haven't seen any other movies by Feig or starring McCarthy, it made me want to go back and give them a shot at some time in the near future. There was something for everyone--both my lady and I enjoyed it very much--and the boys, three and thirteen years-old respectively, loved it as well. Give it a shot.

in_the_crease 6/23/2021 3:57:55PM 8.4

As a male nerd who grew up in the 1980's watching both original movies and the cartoon, running around with my toy proton pack and catching imaginary ghosts in my basement, I should be of the demographic complaining about how this ruins my childhood or that a cast of all women is just a stunt in the name of political correctness, or whatever their issue is. But the truth is, I REALLY enjoyed this movie. The four female leads were absolutely hilarious--especially Kate McKinnon who steals every scene she is in. The other three characters have more growth, more of a story arc, and are more fleshed out as people in general. But McKinnon makes the most out of the available material and creates a very fun and memorable character. The comedy of the 2016 version, while equally effective, is completely different from the dry humor of the original. The absence of Dan Aykroyd's and Harold Ramis's ludicrously funny lines delivered with a straight face, and the deadpan humor of Bill Murray has been switched out with a more over-the-top and in-your-face style of humor. It's not as subtle. Ghostbusters (1984) made me chuckle; Ghostbusters (2016) made me laugh out loud. While a lot of the original's comedy came from the ghosts themselves, i.e. that they're funny instead of legitimately scary, the new version reverses that. There is some very creepy imagery involving things like old timey parade balloons, ghosts pushing against mirrors, and other things that seemed inspired by American Horror Story. Plus, there were some good jump scares, boo moments, that actually caught me off guard. Much like a guitar amp out of Spinal Tap, this film turns both the scares and the comedy up to 11 with great results. I haven't had this much fun at a movie in a long time. The trailer is NOT a valid way to judge this film. The trailer seemed to splice together all the ineffective moments and jokes of the film. But those were the exceptions and not the rule. The rule here is fun, entertainment, laughs, and the occasional scare. When the film works, it works remarkably. The only real misstep was Chris Hemsworth's character. While the gender role reversal of the hot blonde ditz secretary was brilliant and long overdue in a mainstream summer movie, he was just too dumb to be believable. The character of Kevin belonged in a cartoon and not a legitimate movie. The best line in the movie references Jaws and Annie Potts' cameo made me cheer. However... If you've already decided you hate this movie without even seeing it, you probably won't like it. That's how these things usually work. But, if you have an open mind and are reserving judgement, I suggest you see it. You will be pleasantly surprised.