Review #1,095: 'Ghostbusters' (2016)

There was talk of a Dan Akroyd/Harold Ramis-scripted Ghostbusters sequel for years, with Colombia Pictures understandably keen to reignite the love showered on what is their most commercially successful franchise. While Akroyd and Ramis had an idea in mind, Bill Murray, going through a career renaissance after his lauded performance in Lost in Translation (2004) and working frequently with Wes Anderson and Jim Jarmusch, was not interested. Then in 2014, Ramis passed away, and all hopes of seeing the original foursome together again died with him. However, it didn't take long for Sony to announce that Paul Feig would be taking the franchise in another direction, and changing the gender of the main cast in the process.

For some, including myself, this announcement was an interesting idea. After all, Feig had handled a female comedy ensemble before with Bridemaids (2011), which was well-received by both critics and audiences, and had a muse in the form of Melissa McCarthy, who he had worked with on The Heat (2013) and Spy (2015). McCarthy and fellow Bridemaids star Kristen Wiig were cast as the leads, and would be supported by Saturday Night Live alums Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, completing the titular group of ghost trappers. Yet Feig's vision also inspired one of the ugliest online backlashes in memory, and while fan opposition can always be expected when dealing with a remake of a beloved piece of nostalgia, there was also racism and misogyny, resulting in the film's trailer being voted the most hated in YouTube's history.

Such repugnant trolling only made me want to love the film more, despite my own dislike of what I saw in the trailer and desire to see a childhood favourite well and truly left alone. After a promising and unexpectedly creepy opening, in which a tour guide is chased and attacked by a malevolent glowing goo, and an enjoyable introduction to three of the main characters, Ghostbusters 2016 fails to hit the mark on almost every level. The biggest crime is how tight a leash Feig keeps on Wiig and McCarthy, both wasted here as the 'straight' guys, forced to speak scientific gobbledegook in an attempt to explain the plot, while McKinnon and Jones get to do the goofy stuff to grating effect.

Wiig is Erin Gilbert, a professor hoping to get tenure at Colombia University who tracks down her old pal Abby Yates (McCarthy) after she finds a book they co-authored years earlier about the existence of ghosts selling on Amazon. With ghosts starting to crop up all over the city, it isn't long before Erin is down with Abby's crazy-sounding ideas and, along with the latter's unhinged engineer Jillian (McKinnon), form the Ghostbusters. They hire the handsome but completely stupid secretary Kevin (Chris Hemsworth), and are eventually joined by subway worker Patty (Jones), who offers her 'street smarts' and knowledge of the city to make up for her lack of scientific know-how. The sudden appearance of ghosts is down to the work of disgruntled mad scientist Rowan North (Neil Casey), a bellhop who plans to bring the apocalypse.

The film makes a huge effort to pay its respects to the 1984 and 1989 originals, with homages made to the likes of Marshmallow Man and Rick Moranis' character, and featuring cameos from Murray, Akroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts. Yet while such nods are normally welcome, here they do little but gloss over the absence of any real laughs and emotional connection to the characters. There's also an over-reliance of set-pieces and special effects, with a thinly-drawn antagonist with the haziest of motivations. The funniest part of the movie is Hemsworth, who really does have a talent for comedy, but even he is embarrassed later on with a silly dance scene. To the online mob who may try to say "I told you so," - Ghostbusters isn't bad because of the gender switch or its audacity in trying to reboot a classic, it's bad because it simply isn't funny.


Directed by: Paul Feig
Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, Chris Hemsworth
Country: USA/Australia

Rating: **

Tom Gillespie