(spoiler free)
I’ve never been a massive fan of the original Ghostbusters movies and I didn’t grow up with them so there is zero nostalgia attached to them for me either. Maybe this is why I wasn’t so against this all female reboot, I was actually really for it. As I’m not so much of a fan I suppose I can’t really understand the controversy surrounding the movie but even still it’s all been a bit much. I went into this movie wanting to have a good time, hoping and expecting it to surpass the quality of the original movie.
The main cast are all very talented. Melissa McCarthy & Kristen Wiig are both hilarious comedic actresses when given the right material and have proven chemistry. Alongside them star Kate McKinnon & Leslie Jones, two actresses who I hadn’t heard of until now. Despite this they fit into the mix of actresses easily and the four main characters are played well by the cast. Chris Hemsworth also stars as the receptionist, Kevin. He’s good in his role too. However what overshadows the performances for me had to be the lack of humour in the script, there was nowhere near enough. Hemsworth gets the best gag early on in the film featured in his interview scene but from then on there is little to get the audience laughing. The odd line of dialogue does get a laugh but these are largely from references to popular culture rather than original comedy ideas. The film isn’t unfunny but the cast aren’t used to their full potential due to the lack of further comedy included in the script. As was announced in the build up to the film many of the original cast members signed on for cameos in this remake, unfortunately nearly all of these seem forced and they usually aren’t funny either. If you’re looking for a slightly spooky but also funny family film I’d maybe try ‘Goosebumps’ which came out earlier this year.
The film’s opening sequence concludes with the original theme song playing over the action which immediately gave the film a sense of fun and pace. This gave me hope for what was to come but it’s a shame that the film replaces the original theme song for a new version by Fall Out Boy and Missy Elliot which just doesn’t compare and robs certain sequences of the fun that they could have had with the original song. I really wasn’t a fan of much of the design for the film as well, all the ghosts were very disappointing and I didn’t find much to be visually appealing. That being said I did think the suits, car and blasters looked cool. It wasn’t all bad though, I thought that the film actually did warrant its 3D format, as it was some of the most effective use of this I’ve seen in a while. Also as far as reboots go this was fairly decent. It has many nods to the previous films but it never relies on them too heavily. The film wasn’t afraid to make changes and thankfully it doesn’t play out in the exact same fashion as the first film so in that respect I could see reason for the reboot.
However, these few positives can’t make up for what was a largely disappointing film. Remember this is coming from someone who was looking forward to this film too. There isn’t all that bad in the movie there is just so much that could have been done better. Higher quality design, more comedy and sticking with the original theme song would have improved the end result. Thanks to the cast you’ll probably still manage to have a good time with Ghostbusters but I can’t say that it’s much good and it certainly doesn’t surpass the original.
Rating – 5/10
Question: Which ‘Ghostbusters’ movie is your favourite, original, sequel or reboot?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)
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