Ghostbusters Answer the Call!

iGeekOut

Ghostbusters (2016) Review

The newest Ghostbusters comes out today, and it is poised to become a box office smash. In large part this is due to the love/hate dichotomy that people seem to have in regards to this movie, people will be going to see it just so that they can form their own opinion. In general, the early reviews have shown rather mixed results from both the “professional” critics and the fan with those who provide the reviews either love it or hate it. In the opinion of iGeekOut, there were four elements (Story, Spooks, Originality, and Character Interaction) that influenced our overall rating of this movie. Be aware that there will be some spoilers in this review (not many, but some).

Story

While definitely enjoyable, the overall story of Ghostbusters comes across as rather light, and rather lighthearted. There were definite overtones of the buddy film, and buddy cop film genres and it didn’t really go much beyond that. Additionally, there were no real intricacies or convoluted scenarios that needed to be followed. For the most part it seemed like the story relied heavily on some comedic elements to help move everything along, which is not to say that the story was seriously lacking at all. While the story was just a tad light, it was definitely an enjoyable experience to watch the Ghostbusters do their best to not only save the city (and the world) from the forces of the undead, but figure out who is behind the rise in ghostly activity, and why.

Spooks

As can be expected with the advances in CGI and special effects in Hollywood today, the specters, spooks, and spirits shown in Ghostbusters were simply fantastic. From the very first ghost shown at the start of the movie, located in the Aldridge Mansion, the spooks were definitely topnotch and only improved over the course of the movie. Arguably one of the creepiest elements of the entire movie was when the Ghostbusters go to the metal concert being hosted by Ozzy Osbourne, and they come across some manikins. The whole scene is very reminiscent of some classic horror movies where you expect something evil to happen, and frankly you aren’t disappointed.

Originality

Sad to say, since this is a reboot the material presented in the movie isn’t very original. In many ways you could say that there were elements of the original two Ghostbuster movies combined into this one movie. This may seem like a retread to many (as stated in many of the negative reviews out there), but we really didn’t have any issue with that. You can’t expect a reboot to come up with completely new material 100% of the time, and still remain true to feel and spirit of the original movies. On the other hand, one of the things that I liked the most was how the character of Dr. Jillian Holzman (played by Kate McKinnon) showed the development of the proton packs, and that they didn’t come out of whole cloth. Additionally, instead of simply using the same gear that throughout the movie, there were new things that Holzman developed throughout the move, and had the team use in their ghost catching forays.

Character Interaction

If there is one thing that can either make a movie a success, or cause it to absolutely fall apart, it is the interaction between the characters. This is one area that Ghostbusters absolutely excels at. A prime example of this is how the team does not spring up fully formed. Instead, Dr. Erin gilbert (played by Kristen Wiig) is shown working on her own at Columbia University. When a past “indiscretion” on her part comes to light through the actions of her old friend Dr. Abby Yates (played by Melissa McCarthy) they are brought back into contact with one another, and we are introduced to Dr. Jillian Holzman, and later Patty Tolan (played by Leslie Jones). One of the best examples of not only the character interaction in the movie, but the comedic timing of the group, is during the interviewing of the dumb (but lovable) Kevin (played by Christ Hemsworth), who becomes the groups receptionist.

Rating: Everyone

For those who love a slightly spooky movie that has some truly great laughs, you simply can’t miss with the newest Ghostbusters. This is a truly enjoyable movie, and one that will quickly become a hit in its own right. If one listened to the negative reviews about the movie, most of which were posted a week or so prior to the movie actually being released (wonder how that worked out), then the movie theater could have expected to have been empty. While at the screening that lead to this review, the entire theater was packed as it was a sold out showing. Furthermore, the laughs were nonstop, and as we were leaving the theater we couldn’t hear any negative comments at all. To quote Dan Akroyd, “I ain’t afraid of no ghosts!” You shouldn’t be afraid of any ghosts either, and brave the negative reviews and form your own opinion…you really won’t regret it.