I was too young to see GHOSTBUSTERS at the theater in 1984. But the film was a glorious thing to discover when we rented it at our local video store. As a film that captured the imagination of all ages, the characters have been a yearly staple for Halloween costumes. As an adult, I appreciated the humor and subtle characteristics of our heroes, but as a kid busting ghosts was the coolest thing in the world. GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE zeros in on the child-like aspect, cleverly making the heroes kids this time around. While the nostalgia, Easter eggs, and call-backs will delight an older generation who grew up on Ghostbusters, the kids today are gonna love it.
Single mom, Callie (Carrie Coon) and her two children, Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (McKenna Grace) inherit the “Dirt Farm” in a small town. The past owner was known to locals as a weirdo and recluse. But as strange things continue to happen in town and the kids discover remnants connecting to the old Ghostbusters, the kids take initiative to ‘bust’ the madness.
Led by outsider, scientist-loving, and fantastically dry joke-teller Phoebe, along with her new oddball and comic-relief pal Podcast (Logan Kim), the new crew is wonderfully cast. Phoebe’s older brother whose main goal is to talk to the cute girl named Lucky (Celeste O’Connor) at his new diner job, eventually gets in on the action too. Phoebe’s summer school science teacher, played by the always funny and charismatic Paul Rudd, helps guide the way as the guy, who like the audience, recognizes some of these cool gadgets, from those cool scientists who busted ghosts so long ago. Rudd is the glue that holds it all together. The young cast is amazing and is the perfect direction for this story to go. But Rudd is a necessary factor to comfort the audience into coming on board so we don’t roll our eyes at some of the cheesiness or even the perhaps one to many callbacks.
The special effects are obviously decades better than before, which were groundbreaking in their own right at the time. A variation of the original score is utilized to an effective and eerie degree throughout the film. However, I was disappointed not to have much of a soundtrack that the original so masterfully incorporated. Even GHOSTBUSTERS 2 has Bobby Brown’s “On Our Own,” so they can grab their proton packs and split. I kept thinking some of the spectacular moments could have really revved up the scene with a rockin’ song to lead the way. We do get a taste of Ray Parker Jr.’s original Ghostbusters song at the end. I guess we’ll take what we can get.
Director/writer Jason Reitman, son of original GHOSTBUSTERS director Ivan Reitman, has clearly made GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE as a passion project. The film feels very personal, paying tribute to his father, and the original crew Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and especially the late Harold Ramis. Based on the original screenplay by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, the current screenplay by Gil Kenan and Jason Reitman utilizes nearly every aspect from the original. It sort of replays the events with kids who must stop the reemergence of Gozer. In some ways one might compare it to the structure of the new Star Wars films, which I’m perfectly fine with. But most importantly the characters are well-developed personalities that are a joy to follow. Yes, it might get a bit heavy in nostalgia, especially towards the end, which will delight older audiences on the initial viewing. And don’t forget to stick around through the credits for a couple of added moments. While I think the film overall may have benefited from a little less of the gratifying cameos and call-backs, even if they were properly integrated into the storytelling, I ate up every second of it. I may have even shed a tear.
GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE is exquisitely fun. The new young cast is remarkable. And I found myself smiling ear-to-ear with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments that I can’t wait to share with my children.
