Ghostbusters new movie review

Logo used by the “Ghostbusters” in the film (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Alexander and I went to see the new Ghostbusters movie the other week. It was a very civilised experience in the Reigate Everyman cinema. It even featured bespoke sundaes made in glass jars. The best bit was definitely the movie though.

New Ghostbusters or Original?

The new movie is most definitely not a remake of the original. It takes the same basic premise and brings it firmly into the 21st century.

The movie itself is pretty straightforward, we get what we expect, in that there’s a bit of action and some spectacular effects. However the case is an all female group, which I think makes it a better movie, for social reasons as much as how it gives a new angle to make fun. The team are all slightly social outcasts, not so dissimilar to the originals, but they all have different characters and they don’t map to the original cast with lipstick and long hair. That’s definitely a good thing. There’s still some tropes going on, but they’re different tropes from the original ghostbusters. As scientists/engineers the characters work.

There’s definitely comedy mined through Chris Emsworth’s totally bimbo-esque dim secretary character. The women play with it in a way that would just be squirmingly uncomfortable if the genders were reversed, but which made me laugh out loud when I watched it. Alexander laughed too (he’s 10). Even though there are moments of mild horror, Alexander said he was scared once or twice, it’s still played for laughs.

As you’d expect, the effects are fantastic. However that isn’t really a differentiator these days with CGI. There are some really wonderful scenes though. Right at the beginning it builds some of the horror (mild) with the first ghost. It’s in the trailer, so not a spoiler, but I loved it when the ghost vomits!

Tributes & Cameos

I wasn’t 100% sure myself when I watched it, although I spotted most of the original cast, including a bust of Harold Ramis in the background. Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver both had roles, as did a couple of others. So it brought it home that this was a consensual remake that people were comfortable with. The controversy over the casting was clearly heat and noise from the neanderthal element rather than a real issue for anyone involved.

Overall I really enjoyed it, not quite as much as The Force Awakens (which I saw twice in the cinema) but more than enough to also want to get it on DVD when it comes out. You should definitely go see it if you were thinking about it.