by Nick Ferro, Contributing Writer
I won’t risk burying the lede here: The original Ghostbusters is my favorite comedy of all time. I grew up watching it constantly on a VHS that my dad recorded off TV. It was one of the first DVDs I ever owned and was the first movie I ever listened to a commentary track (I highly recommend you check it out; Dan Ackroyd’s original version of the script was wild). A story that was told in my house was that when my mother was pregnant with me, they went to see Ghostbusters in the theaters, and I wouldn’t stop kicking the whole movie. I also am one of those rare people who loves Ghostbusters 2 and can’t quite understand why its derided by so many. When the Ghostbusters video game came out, I was working at a well-known video game store, and it was showcased as being a true sequel and had all the original voice actors. The hype I had for that game was so intense that I won our store a prize pack of shirts and other goodies for selling the most pre-orders in our district.
After years of hearing about the plethora of “Ghostbusters 3” scripts that might get greenlit but never quite made it, for one reason or another [CoughBillMurrayCough], I was starting to give up hope. I resigned myself to accepting the video game as the only sequel we would get, especially after the tragic passing of Harold Ramis. So, when I heard that after 30 years, they were finally making a sequel, to say I was excited would be an understatement.
When the first trailer for Ghostbusters: Afterlife released, the overwhelming excitement caused me to tear up, for it was finally happening. Having to wait this last year and a half as Sony kept pushing the release date further and further back was agony! Every time I thought we were getting close it moved again. I was starting to think this day would never come. But it is finally here! The movie I have been unfairly building up in my brain for the past three decades has finally arrived, and I had the pleasure of experiencing it at my local IMAX. Did it live up to my completely unrealistic and unattainable expectations? Of course, it didn’t; those expectations were completely unrealistic and unattainable. Did you not read that last sentence? No, but seriously, it actually came really close!
Ghostbusters: Afterlife, co-written and directed by Jason Reitman, stars McKenna Grace as Phoebe, a 12-year-old girl who moves to a small town in Oklahoma with her mother (Carrie Coon) and brother Trevor (Finn Wolfhard). They are called to the town of Summerville when Phoebe’s estranged grandfather Egon dies, and her mother needs to sort out his estate. When weird things start happening around the house, Phoebe learns that there was more to her grandfather than she realizes. With the help of a new friend “Podcast” at school (played by newcomer Logan Kim) and her teacher Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd), she must discover the secrets of her grandfather’s past. The movie focuses on Phoebe as she slowly uncovers more details regarding the existence of ghosts, her grandfather’s life as a Ghostbuster, and the reason he was living in the middle of nowhere after having abandoned his family and friends years prior. Although Harold Ramis is no longer with us, making his character’s granddaughter the main character allowed his spirit to be ever-present throughout the movie. He is just as much a part of it as any of the other original Ghostbusters, making the dedication, “For Harold” at the end of the film truly touching. Add the beautiful score, which takes the music from the original and reimagines it to have a more whimsical feel, and I dare any fan of the franchise to not shed a tear by the end.
The standout star of this movie is 100% Grace. She not only has the weight of the entire movie on her shoulders, but also delivers a performance that is both endearing and confident. She pays homage to Ramis by giving her character similar mannerisms that Ramis used while portraying Egon in the original films. She also brings a uniqueness to the role that keeps it from being a “nostalgia” act. She was without a doubt my kid’s and my favorite character — she is incredibly smart and resourceful and exactly the kind of young female role model that I am glad my daughters get to have (it also didn’t hurt that her ‘dad joke’ game was strong).
In his feature film debut, Kim adds a healthy amount of comic relief to the proceedings. Many movies attempt “kid humor” and fail, but Kim really delivers some solid laughs, and I found myself at the very least chuckling at most of his line deliveries be them over the top or subtle. He was even able to give Rudd a run for his money.
In my opinion, one of the funniest actors of this generation is People Magazine’s sexiest man alive, Paul Rudd. Rudd brings the “Venkman” energy to this movie that had me laughing whether it be the delivery of a joke or simply a facial expression; I was always entertained when he was onscreen. Coon and Wolfhard also deliver fine performances for their roles; however, they were not given as much to do throughout the movie. I feel like there was probably 20 minutes of movie left on the cutting room floor that explored Wolfhard’s potential relationship with a girl he has a crush on named Lucky (Celeste O’Connor). The trailers for this movie made it seem as though Wolfhard was the main character, so I almost wonder if he and Grace had closer to equal screen time originally. For being top billed, I was surprised that Wolfhard took a backseat for the majority of the film.
Reitman sure does know how to shoot a movie. There were so many scenes that looked beautiful, especially in IMAX. There is one particular shot of them chasing a ghost in Ecto-1 against the backdrop of a sunset that I would love to have as a painting on my wall. He also takes his time with the pacing of the first act to allow you to get to know Phoebe, Podcast, and the other main characters, which felt a bit slow in the moment. What I realize, the more I think on it, is that this was exactly the pacing the movie needed; on a second watch, the slower pacing didn’t bother me. Knowing the previous two films inside and out, during my first viewing of Afterlife, I felt like the first act was teasing me with those sweet, sweet “memba-berries,” but failing to deliver. I wanted to get all the “things” and I didn’t want them to keep taking their time. I waited 30 years for this! Get to the point! But that’s exactly the mistake almost every bad nostalgia bait “10-year-later” sequel does. They give you everything you want and don’t care about doing any actual leg work thematically or in a way that endears you to the characters. Recently movies have trained us to expect the nostalgia and “become Leo DiCaprio pointing at the screen,” so to actually be put off when it doesn’t happen, I had to re-assess my priorities.
Now, don’t get me wrong, there is an overuse of nostalgia in some parts of this movie — shoehorned jokes, references, and a third act, not-so-surprising surprise that almost stops the progression of the movie dead in its tracks (you’re welcome for the pun… you earned it). However, the movie recovers quickly and manages to segue back into its flow in such a way that left me disappointed that it didn’t keep going for another 20 minutes.
Honestly, other than a few story contrivances, like the super smart character having to attend summer school for… reasons… there wasn’t too much to dislike. There were a few moments where the movie introduces an idea without explaining why it’s happening. I’m told that I notice these things too often and shouldn’t be so critical, but whenever this happens in a movie, I get annoyed. When it happens in Afterlife, the moments are usually quick and followed up with something to distract you. There are a ton of channels on YouTube dedicated to pointing these moments out. As a fan of them, I look forward to seeing them take Afterlife to task, but I am sure that the average movie goer won’t notice or mind them in the slightest. There is a Starbucks reference though, which is completely contradicted later on which irked me for its laziness; when you see it, you’ll understand. The biggest offender of the movie, for me, was all the repeated story beats from the original. I understand why they did it: they want to give context to the younger audience who might not know the originals, and I am sure those who don’t care for nostalgia in their movies will hate these moments. Without spoiling anything, there are familiar ghosts, lore, and even shots from the first movie that are not only prominent, but heavily featured in the third act.
In many ways this movie suffers from the Return of the Jedi problem of, “it’s the Death Star, only it’s bigger this time.” I, for one, can say as a kid growing up, Return of the Jedi was my favorite, so I can almost guarantee that Afterlife will probably be the favorite entry for the newer generation. This will, however, be what keeps Afterlife from being my favorite entry in the series (that and the whole, the first one is my favorite thing from up top).
After seeing Ghostbusters: Afterlife twice now, I can safely say that it is a worthy sequel and the third installment that fans have been waiting for all these years. My girls both loved it as well, so I am also confident that the next generation of fans will be intrigued and hopeful for sequels. Although it has some issues and leans heavy on nostalgia in the third act, it does what it set out to do and paid proper tribute to both the original movie and the franchise as a whole. This movie is a love letter to fans, but also a “welcome letter” to the kids of those fans. My kids are no strangers to Ghostbusters 1 and 2, but those movies aren’t favorites for them, which makes sense — they are older and dated and the comedy is more for adults. Ghostbusters: Afterlife is right up my kids’ alley. It’s updated with modern effects, it’s paced better, and it has humor that they appreciate, but not “kid humor” that will make adults go insane. This is quite possibly the best version of what a reboot/sequel should be, in the sense that its minor shortcomings for the older generation are its strengths for the younger generation. So, as a duly designated representative of the city, county, and state of SiftPop, I order you to put Ghostbusters: Afterlife at the top of your must-see list and travel forthwith to your movie theater of origin or to the nearest convenient parallel dimension! And before you ask, “no I’m not a god” …WAIT!
Grade: A-
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