Andrew
Film Review
Tinashe Kusema
NAVIGATING through the “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” review is arguably one of the toughest things I have had to do since I started running this column some 10 or so years back.
There are a few things that need to be said about this film, the one that came before and the franchise as a whole. For starters, this is certainly a watchable remake compared to many others.
The idea of remaking old classics and trying to modernise old ideas should stop. The person who thought it wise to make a belated sequel to the 1997 action-thriller “Face/Off” should be heavily condemned.
Yes, “Face/Off 2” is really happening!
I digress. While “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” is not as good as the original movies, I feel it is 10 times better than the 2016 attempt with an all-female cast.
Paul Feig’s “Ghostbusters” movie probably has a place on the list of worst movies of all time. It almost ruined a beloved franchise and totally wasted great talents like Melissa McCarthy, Kirsten Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones.
The premise was horrible, the performances were subpar and the film directors appeared not to know who their target audience were. As a result, this messed up the overall production.
Luckily, Jason Reitman, who co-wrote and directed the film, does not fall into any of the aforesaid pitfalls.
For those not in the know, Jason Reitman is the son of Ivan Reitman, who was at the helm of the original “Ghostbusters” films.
Rather than pander to the whims of today’s flaky audience, Jason Reitman pays homage to both his father’s creation and the late Harold Ramis.
Ramis was one of the original Ghostbusters, but the Canadian actor died back in 2014 aged 69, after a long battle with autoimmune inflammatory vasculitis. I only bring up the actor and his untimely death as his character Egon Spengler plays an important role in this movie.
Much like the actor himself, Spengler dies after which his estranged daughter Callie (Carrie Coon) and her children Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (McKenna Grace) get called to settle his estate.
I use the word estate very loosely because all the man had was an old dirt farm in the middle of nowhere.
The kids find out that the farm is haunted and the ghost slowly helps them unravel and rediscover their grandfather’s work and legacy.
Ghosts start surfacing around the small town. It is up to Trevor and Phoebe to stop an old rival of their grandfather’s (Gozer) from returning to the land of the living.
They also get assistance from a local townie Lucky Domingo (Celeste O’Çonnor), a Ghostbusters-obsessed science teacher Gary Grooberson (Paul Ruud) and a kid who nicknames himself Podcast (Logan Kim).
The film scores high in several departments, top of which is how they manage to celebrate the lives of both Jason Reitman and Ramis without being too obvious or transparent.
The bait and switch in the casting were clever too. If the movie’s trailer is anything to go by, one would have thought that Wolfgang’s Trevor was the main character of the film.
However, 30 minutes into the film, it becomes abundantly clear that Grace’s Phoebe is the real star.
As the extremely bright and science-obsessed grandchild of Egon Spengler, Grace gives a five-star performance and demonstrates great chemistry with all her co-stars, especially Logan’s Podcast.
Much like he has done in every film he has starred in, Rudd brings the laughs as the goofy, charming and loveable science teacher and Ghostbusters fan Mr Grooberson. The film appeals to all age groups.
The plot and special cameos spread throughout the movie are likely to give old-school fans of the franchise a good dose of nostalgia. The casting of “Stranger Things” star Wolfgang and McKenna Grace will please new fans and the dreaded millennials. I am not going to say anything bad about the pedestrian plot as it serves its purpose well.
Online Reporter