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Ghostbusters: Afterlife
My fears that revisiting this franchise was implausible were quickly vanquished as I found myself completely dazzled by a return to a franchise that first came to the screen 37 years ago. 2021's Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a dark and often frightening return to the story that first came to the screen in 1984 with a story darker in tone but completely respecting its origins while providing an undeniably fresh and exciting story.
As the film opens a single mom named Callie, her 15 year old son Trevor and her 12 year old daughter Phoebe have been evicted from their home and travel to a one horse town named Somerville, Oklahoma to move into an old farmhouse that was left to them by Callie's father. It's long before clues lead us to the revelation that Callie, Trevor, and Phoebe are the daughter and grandchildren of Egon Spengler (portrayed by the late Harold Ramis in the first two films) and that Spengler has left a very special legacy for his family that puts them in the same kind of danger that Egon and his partners faced in '84.
The lion's share of the credit for why this film totally works has to go to Oscar-nominated director Jason Reitman (Up in the Air, Juno). And I have to say that I would have been really upset if anyone but Reitman had been in the director's chair on this one since the original film was directed by his father, Ivan Reitman. Reitman. Dan Aykroyd, and Gil Kenan have crafted a beautifully layered screenplay that has been lifted from its 1984 roots and creating a story that isn't a rehash of the first one, but a new story faithfully created from the original. The film doesn't just re-assemble the original cast and send them on a new adventure. It respects the facts that 37 years have passed and introduces us to new characters who find themselves wrapped up in a legacy they knew nothing about. Loved the way the events of the first film are only introduced through You Tube Videos.
Reitman provides a wonderful realism to the story in that the three members of Egon's family are brought into the story at different levels of interest and acceptance of their family legacy. As they arrive in Somerville, Callie has no interest in what her father did or why the Somerville citizens referred to him as "The Dirt Farmer." However, we watch young Phoebe embrace her grandfather's memory and as she does, her methodical discovery of all the most famous set pieces from the first film. Trevor's interest is somewhere in the middle until he discovers Ecto-!, the guys' original vehicle, wrapped in a cover in a barn and decides to get it going.
Director Reitman puts a lot of detail into incorporating all of the most famous demons from the first film without just duplicating what we saw in 1984. We meet the monster that chased Rick Moranis through the streets of Manhattan and a green creature named Muncher, not to mention the gatekeeper and the keymaster. The StayPuft Mashmellow Man even returns in this story, but it's nothing like his appearance in the first film. In bringing these creatures back to the story, Reitman even creates knowing winks to other sci-fi classics like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, ET, and Gremlins. The final showdown is a little longer than need be, but I was able to forgive
Carrie Coon brings a believable cynicism to Callie and works well with Paul Rudd as the teacher Grooberson, but the star-making performance of McKenna Grace is the standout. Reitman also manages to get cameo appearances from Annie Potts, Sigorney Weaver, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and yes, Harold Ramis (don't ask). One of the best sequels I've seen in a long time.
My fears that revisiting this franchise was implausible were quickly vanquished as I found myself completely dazzled by a return to a franchise that first came to the screen 37 years ago. 2021's Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a dark and often frightening return to the story that first came to the screen in 1984 with a story darker in tone but completely respecting its origins while providing an undeniably fresh and exciting story.
As the film opens a single mom named Callie, her 15 year old son Trevor and her 12 year old daughter Phoebe have been evicted from their home and travel to a one horse town named Somerville, Oklahoma to move into an old farmhouse that was left to them by Callie's father. It's long before clues lead us to the revelation that Callie, Trevor, and Phoebe are the daughter and grandchildren of Egon Spengler (portrayed by the late Harold Ramis in the first two films) and that Spengler has left a very special legacy for his family that puts them in the same kind of danger that Egon and his partners faced in '84.
The lion's share of the credit for why this film totally works has to go to Oscar-nominated director Jason Reitman (Up in the Air, Juno). And I have to say that I would have been really upset if anyone but Reitman had been in the director's chair on this one since the original film was directed by his father, Ivan Reitman. Reitman. Dan Aykroyd, and Gil Kenan have crafted a beautifully layered screenplay that has been lifted from its 1984 roots and creating a story that isn't a rehash of the first one, but a new story faithfully created from the original. The film doesn't just re-assemble the original cast and send them on a new adventure. It respects the facts that 37 years have passed and introduces us to new characters who find themselves wrapped up in a legacy they knew nothing about. Loved the way the events of the first film are only introduced through You Tube Videos.
Reitman provides a wonderful realism to the story in that the three members of Egon's family are brought into the story at different levels of interest and acceptance of their family legacy. As they arrive in Somerville, Callie has no interest in what her father did or why the Somerville citizens referred to him as "The Dirt Farmer." However, we watch young Phoebe embrace her grandfather's memory and as she does, her methodical discovery of all the most famous set pieces from the first film. Trevor's interest is somewhere in the middle until he discovers Ecto-!, the guys' original vehicle, wrapped in a cover in a barn and decides to get it going.
Director Reitman puts a lot of detail into incorporating all of the most famous demons from the first film without just duplicating what we saw in 1984. We meet the monster that chased Rick Moranis through the streets of Manhattan and a green creature named Muncher, not to mention the gatekeeper and the keymaster. The StayPuft Mashmellow Man even returns in this story, but it's nothing like his appearance in the first film. In bringing these creatures back to the story, Reitman even creates knowing winks to other sci-fi classics like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, ET, and Gremlins. The final showdown is a little longer than need be, but I was able to forgive
Carrie Coon brings a believable cynicism to Callie and works well with Paul Rudd as the teacher Grooberson, but the star-making performance of McKenna Grace is the standout. Reitman also manages to get cameo appearances from Annie Potts, Sigorney Weaver, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and yes, Harold Ramis (don't ask). One of the best sequels I've seen in a long time.