Movie Review - Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters **½ (out of 5) (PG-13) All you sexists posing as purists who railed at the idea of the guys in the first crew being replaced by women were dead wrong. This updated version of the classic comedy may not be any better than the mediocre 1989 sequel, but it’s not because of the gender of the stars. It’s the script. It’s almost always the script. Director Paul Feig co-authored it with Katie Dippold, whose background is mostly in sitcoms.

Just as stars Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd shared time on Saturday Night Live, this one stars Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, with supporting roles from Cecily Strong and others with SNL roots. While not specifically mentioning the exploits of their predecessors, the film is loaded with references, the original theme song and cameos (many of the production’s best moments; other gems appear during the credits), while telling a rather similar tale of ghostly infestation, public response, and team tactics.

The upside of the movie lies largely in the vivid, colorful special effects. Today’s tech makes for bigger ghosties and badder slimers than what the f/x wizards could whip up in 1984. There are plenty of visual treats, with 3-D upgrading the experience appreciably. The dialog serves up a fair number of gags and punch lines, with Jones particularly adding zest to the proceedings. Unfortunately, while Melissa McCarthy delivers her usual sort of comic craziness, Wiig and McKinnon are shackled by poorly-conceived characters, tending to be more irritating than amusing. Chris Hemsworth’s turn as the dim-witted stud-muffin they hire as a receptionist is refreshingly funny for a while, but wears thin from overexposure. Viewers' visceral engagement levels are even more impaired by the absence of counterparts to the loathsome, loopy and luscious dimensions elevating the first from William Atherton, Rick Moranis and Sigourney Weaver (in that order, of course). As summer no-brainers go, this one is reasonably entertaining, so long as your expectations are sufficiently lowered. (7/15/16)