MOVIE REVIEW: Ghostbusters: Afterlife

(Showdown - Rob Simonsen)

Ever wonder what a cigarette and a hamster have in common?

...You know what, I'm getting ahead of myself.  Let's go back a little.

Nostalgia is a dangerous utility in the world of storytelling.  When used correctly, it results in the most powerful of moments.  When used poorly, you end up with a Melissa McCarthy movie.

You'll all be delighted to know that Melissa McCarthy isn't anywhere in Ghostbusters: Afterlife but I still feel like I'm getting ahead of myself.

The original 'Ghostbusters' is one of those rare moves that transcends the time in which it was conceived.  The story was wildly entertaining, the audio and video presentation was wholly unique, and the cast was basically perfect. Directed by Ivan Reitman and largely written by the late -- and desperately missed - Harold Ramis, the film also boasted some of the most slyly intelligent dialogue of its time, hearkening to a time when movies weren't afraid to be intelligent first and silly second.  Naturally, the film also benefitted from a healthy dose of zeitgeist, no pun intended.

Fast forward through a good-but-still-less-than sequel, an only mildly well-received video game, and a reboot that could only be generously called controversial.  Tragically unrealized rumors circulated the world for years about a story for a proper threequel that the original creative team had cooked up...but then the unthinkable happened and we lost Ramis.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, THIS showed up on YouTube in mid-2019:

To suggest that the internet went apeshit would be an understatement.  Those who knew, knew.  Those who didn't began gnashing their teeth about, you guessed it...nostalgia.  Right, wrong, or otherwise, we would know soon enough.  The teaser ends with, "Summer 2020."  A year wouldn't be that long to wait.  As if the new film's director, Jason Reitman, knew that taste wouldn't be enough, THIS dropped shortly before Christmas 2019:

 Once again, the internet absolutely exploded, its halls filled even more with voices wildly anticipatory or wildly opposed.  Summer 2020 was just six months away...except something much scarier than a ghost would see the film delayed until fall 2021.

Finally, after much anticipation and another trailer, it's here.  The potential for a proper sequel to a movie that, in its genre, is very nearly perfect.

Was it worth the wait?

THE SHORT-ISH VERSION:

You cannot talk about this movie without the word 'nostalgia' coming up.  The teaser is full of it, the trailer is full of it, and yes, the movie is absolutely STUFFED with it. If seeing that made you excited, good news! The movie is going to blow your head off.  If all that nostalgia didn't do it for you, the movie ian't going to magically overcome that.

If you're in the latter camp, I feel really sorry for you.  You deserve the kind of joy that this film is going to bring to everyone else.

THE LONG VERSION:

I'm a guy that grew up with this movie in the '80s.  There was just so much about this movie that resonated with me, from the visual effects to the really unique soundtrack and score.  When this movie was released on Blu-Ray several years ago, I bought it, watched it immediately, and was struck by how well it still held up.  I mean, check this out:

Seriously, that's just...rocket fuel as far as I'm concerned.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife is one of those movies that I wished I'd been able to watch in a completely empty theater so that I could have squealed loudly without interrupting other patrons.  Alas for the other patrons, my theater was not empty and I did very little to restrain myself in any number of moments as I watched this film.

'Afterlife' does not stand on its own two feet.  What makes it excellent is very much what came before it and how the film calls back to it.  Done well, nostalgia is all about understanding what made a thing really unique and engaging and then not just tapping that, but SHOWING IT RESPECT as you do.   What made both Ghostbusters films strong was the fact that the movies never laughed at themselves.  No one ever actively engaged in buffoonery or schtick, opting for a subtle nod and wink to the viewer instead.  The effects of the films reflected this, tending towards the practical and startlingly realistic whenever possible.  Whenever it wasn't, special effects were angled towards things that fit the visual appearance of the rest of the film rather than something cartoonish and jarringly out of sync with the rest of the movie's tone.  The music was a truly unique blend of soundtrack songs and some of the most unique uses of wood flutes, piano, and dissonance within minor chord progressions that combined to elicit genuine levels of tension and, in certain instances, fear. 

'Afterlife' leverages all of this with startling fidelity, and it does it in spades.  The first time you hear a proton pack power up, you -will- get goosebumps...and what comes after might just make you stand up and scream in happiness.  This, along with so many other moments, feels like a childhood dream fully realized as an adult, a promise fulfilled. So much of 'Afterlife' feels like the original effects were simply up-scaled in fidelity rather than changed. It looks and feels and sounds EXACTLY like it should.

The story for 'Afterlife' is tightly woven into the first Ghostbuster film. It follows the family of Egon Spengler, the unapologetic genius from the the OG Ghostbuster squad, as they work to uncover what caused Egon to move away and into seclusion.  It's more than serviceable, full of plot beats that will make you squeal and point at the screen as you begin putting things together.

Pretty much every single member of the cast in this movie is excellent at the part they've been given to play.  Rising above them all, however, is McKenna Grace's Phoebe Spengler, Egon's chip-off-the-old-block granddaughter.  Grace doesn't run away with every scene she's in.  She doesn't have to.  She walks away with it confidently clutched in her tiny fist, and some of her mannerisms may just make you mist up a little.  I know I did.  Startlingly, the movie's weak link was actually Paul Rudd who, while still genuinely entertaining, felt startlingly underused.

Those of you who know me will understand how much of a compliment this is, as I pretty much don't have a use for Paul Rudd.  His range is hinted at several times in this film but he's just never really allowed the chance to shine, due mostly to a script that simply doesn't give him enough screen time and room to run.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a startlingly good movie, one that -- at least for me -- did something very, very rare: lived up to the hype.  This one's worth going to see in a theater too -- stay after ALL of the credits! -- if only because of the audio.  Ghostbusters has some of the most memorable sound design of any movie EVER and you will not want to miss how that sounds in Dolby Atmos. Trust me.

...Oh, and about that cigarette and hamster?  Don't worry, you'll find out.