To See or Not to See: Ghostbusters

“If there’s somethin’ strange in your neighborhood
Who you gonna call? 
Ghostbusters!” 

The reboot of the 1984 classic Ghostbusters is, overall, a fun, laugh-filled film that is sure to delight audiences of all ages. New York City is threatened by an influx of millions of ghosts, released by a bullied, crazed genius. Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy), Erin Gilbert (Kristen Wiig), Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon), and Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones) join together to form Ghostbusters in order to learn about and fight the paranormal.

Months and months before the film–or trailer–was actually released, it was getting buzz. Most of the buzz, unfortunately, was not great. A lot of people complained about the all-female cast and how it was going to ruin a classic franchise. Boy, were they wrong.

The cast of Ghostbusters is quite funny. The four leads–Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones–had a lively chemistry. Each character drew it’s gut-busting moment out of the audience. In particular, Leslie Jones‘s Patty stole the show. She had delightful one-liners (one of my favorites happens when she walks into a room of mannequins on her search for a ghost: “I just walked into a room full of nightmares.”), and her delivery was on point. On the other hand, I had high hopes for Kate McKinnon‘s character, but she fell a little short. Holtzmann was a little too stylized and over-the-top to be super hilarious. Another breakout of the cast was Chris Hemsworth as Kevin, the Ghostbusters’s dim-witted assistant. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the wonderful cameos from original Ghostbusters cast members sprinkled throughout the film (I mean, when isn’t a Bill Murray cameo not amazing?). All of them were natural and were a wonderful nod to the classic.

While some of the CGI was a little silly (and some of the New York City sets were obviously sound stage versions of the city), Ghostbusters has plenty of spooky moments to thrill audiences (I will admit, I did jump once or twice).

All in all, Ghostbusters is a good choice as the comedy of the summer that you should see.

★ ★ ★ out of 4

Photo Credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc.