I have a problem. I’m not sure I can fix it. Can I write a reliable review in this state?! How long has it been? How much am I looking forward to this?
Sitting with a friend to watch a movie, in the cinema…! Getting a popcorn and a drink, finding my seat. Hearing the excited chatter of everyone else who’s feeling the same way I am. Watching trailers of other movies I really want to see and will. How does one write an objective review when I’m just so happy to be here? Perhaps while reading this you’ll keep that in mind. I’m not sure how much this review will be effected but surely it must be.
So, I thought the movie was totally great! It was the fun distraction I was looking for. I’m not wanting Ghostbusters to be life changing. I just want fun characters, cool effects and a story I can follow. This Ghostbusters movie is more of a kid’s film, which is fine. It follows a single mother and her two younglings who are forced to move to a small town in order to take control of her late father’s farm, house and property.
This late father of hers just so happens to be Egon. Beloved Egon from the original Ghostbusters movies. But there is nothing at the farm, it seems, except a busted old house and lots of dirt. However, on closer inspection there is a whole bunch of ghost-science stuff and a stack of still working props from the original movie. Nice.
A quick note on what’s usually the downfall of any movie with kids. It’s usually the kids. Oftentimes, they are absolutely insufferable. But, not only did I keep my eyes open while they were on screen, I actually had fun watching their hijinks! They weren’t even trying too hard! Perfect! It actually reminded me of older movies like Dazed and Confused where kids were cool and real. They got me on their side! Which is amazing to me, I didn’t think that would happen again. Great work, Ghostbusters!
Finn Wolfhard who plays Trevor, Egon’s grandson has been in Stranger Things so this is nice and familiar for him. So much so that he fits into the small-town vibe better than some of the actual locals. To make the movie even safer Paul Rudd plays Mr. Grooberson, a local teacher who gets caught up in our adventure.
Some of my favorite scenes are with him. One being from the movie trailer where a bunch of mini marshmallow men breakout of their confines at a local supermarket. They have a particularly masochistic bent to them, which for me got the biggest laughs of the film. It sounds rough but the tone was very funny.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife was a complete return to the familiar universe with a lot of the old gear a whole bunch of the old actors and a return of some familiar badies. It’s done in a way to repair what went before, I’m thinking. But this in turn introduced two problems that held the movie back for me. I think it over-compensated with nostalgia. The first two acts where slow but solid, introducing us to the new young cast. But the third act went full old school.
As I don’t want to spoil surprises and story lines, I will just say that the final part gives too much time to nostalgia. They should have trusted in the characters they had built up to that point, to bring it home on their own. Next time, I guess.
But I do love going to the movies. Frekn fantastic. Big screen, big sound and big drinks holder. I sit there and you tell me a story. Thank you magic room!
