Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Rating - 12
Director - Jason Reitman
Written by - Gil Kenan and Jason Reitman
Starring - McKenna Grace, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Paul Rudd
Run time - 124 minutes
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a 2021 adventure sci-fi comedy and the sequel to Ghostbusters (1984) and Ghostbusters II (1989). This outing is set in the present day; nearly 40 years after the events of the first Ghostbusters film, where the original Ghostbusters saved New York City from the evil god Gozer. Single mother Callie Spengler (Carrie Coon), moves to the small town of Summerville, Oklahoma with her kids Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and cunning science wizz Phoebe (McKenna Grace). In Summerville, Phoebe befriends a kid nicknamed Podcast (Logan Kim) and her teacher Gary (Paul Rudd) who are both interested in ghost hunting. Together, along with Trevor and his friend Lucky (Celeste O’Connor), they join forces to fight against the return of Gozer and the apocalypse that’d follow if the god won.
McKenna Grace - best known previously for the movies I, Tonya and Gifted, which she starred in alongside Chris Evans - is terrific in this movie and makes a wonderful protagonist as Phoebe Spengler. Carrie Coon is great in her role as well, bringing most of the emotional depth in the film. Finn Wolfhard is good too as his character brings most of the comedy in the movie. And Paul Rudd is amazing as always, which is down to his charismatic and lovable character and performance.
The movie also features cameo appearances from the original cast including Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts. Harold Ramis, who played Egon Spengler in the first two films, died in 2014 and appears posthumously in this outing of the series through archival footage and CGI.
The entirety of the 2016 spinoff Ghostbusters movie is completely discarded in this film as it is considered not part of the same universe as the male-led movies. The 2016 Ghostbusters was not well-received by a lot of critics at the time of release, with their main problems being a female-led cast, which is extremely misogynistic and gives no real excuse not to like the film (except the fact that it's not that good).
The film is one of Hollywood's many ‘nostalgia remakes’, which has become a frequent theme in movies over several years. These films usually require the audience to have seen the former installments and are most likely, poorly received by critics. The recent Home Alone movie, Home Sweet Home Alone, is a prime example of relying on audience nostalgia and in which it fails massively. Examples of times it has debatably worked are in Disney movies, like 2019’s live action remake of The Lion King and Toy Story 4, and the Jumanji sequels.
The difference with this movie compared to other movies reliant on nostalgia is that this time round, it actually succeeds in making it watchable and enjoyable. There may be a lack of laughs or certain emotional build-up, but it’s still worth a watch for fans of the series. To be honest, this is the best I feel that they could’ve done at the standards of today's cinema. Though the scene featuring the ghost version of Egon Spengler may be somewhat cringe-worthy, this film is a touching tribute to Harold Ramis and the series in general. The post-credits scene hints that a sequel may be on its way as well.
Score - 7/10
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is in cinemas now.
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