Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

Going in, I had zero expectations and I *knew* it had to be better than 2016's Ghostbusters. It merely had to exist to be better than that last tragedy 5 years ago.

But, here's the thing: It's barely better than the 2016 atrocity. At least Paul Feig tried to make that movie a comedy. This was absolutely NO comedy.

And that's the biggest thing missing here and what made this a far distant entry in the nearly-40-year-old series: jokes. Sure, our lead, Egon's granddaughter, spews decades-old one-liners (which admittedly, were funny) throughout, but that's the extend of 90% of the humor. Naturally, Paul Rudd fills in the remaining 10% with a running 80s horror gag.

But, the 1st comedic masterpiece and 1989's comedic follow-up were COMEDIES. Not horror, sci-fi, supernatural...straight up comedies. This 2021 too-late (official) third entry was a drama chock-full of forced nostalgia and repeated scenes from the original. Not only did this make me sad, but it left me feeling underwhelmed and unsatisfied.

Worst Mother of the Year is all-but completely nonchalant about getting evicted and had her estranged father not just died and left her a DIRT house in the middle of Nowhere, OK, her kids would be homeless. But, lucky for them, they all get to move reluctantly into Small Town USA. Unlucky for them, a repeat of the original 1984's events are right under their feet.

There's more to it, like the relationship, or lack thereof, between the terrible mother's father, former Ghostbuster Egon and his daughter/friends and a budding romance between the granddaughter and an eccentric kid who calls himself "Podcast." And their relationship, the young blossoming romance, was surprisingly the best part of this movie. The two kids were so cute together and had great chemistry.

But, that's also part of the problem. This movie felt like a TV/Streaming episode, like from Stranger Things and overall, incomplete and rushed. As if they were either running out of time, low on budget or both and they just released the first draft. I shouldn't have gone away loving most about a Ghostbusters film: a story of two kids' first love. It should have been about the comedy and the feeling of nostalgia that wasn't forced like it's been for the past decade.

Oh, well, again, it's waaaay better than Ghostbusters (2016,) but like Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, this fourth entry is making me love Ghostbusters II all the more.

***

Final Thoughts: Recommended for fans of the original. Brand new viewers need to watch the original 2 first, please. Don't watch this and think this was a genuine Ghostbusters movie. This is a love letter, not a sequel.

Fmovies: Finally watched "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" and I must say it was a decent follow up with some charming and sentimental scenes that brought back memories of old ghosts. As the film centers around and has a connection of the grandson of a past "Ghostbuster" and a spooky abandoned farm house left by him. And again ghost are on the prowl and move in on this new era and help and assistance is given from old legends in the end as Murray, Dan, and Ernie make an appearance to fight the evil spirits. And most liked and memorable was the cute and sweet scenes of the little baby marshmallow men who come to life with smores at Wal-Mart in front of Paul Rudd's teacher character I thought that was so sentimental, and had an original legacy feel and a tribute to the classic 84 "Stay Puft Marshmallow Man"! I loved the mini pufts! Overall this picture is nothing great still it entertained and was interesting with the ghost subject all while the new era characters had past connections to the classic and original "Ghostbusters".

Just because I was alive for the original 1984 Ghostbusters doesn't mean you young'uns won't enjoy it as much as I do. Ghostbusters: Afterlife is an entertainment for the entire family: It has scary ghosts, nerdy kids, young teen romance, adult romance, and nostalgic special effects as well as equipment like a tricked-out Ectomobile, a portable nuclear particle accelerator, and a ghost trap, to name only a few to delight kids and adults, who may fondly remember analog.

Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) as the science-friendly 12-year-old and her siblings, grandkids of an original Ghostbuster, move to a remote Oklahoma farm, the dilapidated "Dirt" estate. They encounter ghosts, as to be expected because gramps didn't quite finish the ghost-busting job from '84.

The ghosts are a bit goofy (more like out-of-control dogs and marshmallows), and the stakes may not be earth-shattering, but the fun they have trying to capture the critters is a high-spirited chase coupled with a subtle lesson about the importance of family, legacy, and cooperation. The relevance of this classic-based tale is in the notion that working together is an answer to beating back intruders (COVID, anyone?).

Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, and Harold Ramis appear (appropriately Ramis as ghost since he has left us in death to write about them somewhere), not enough but just enough to link the past to the present. This fourth iteration, and certainly the best of the sequels, will make you chuckle, maybe cry a little, scare you a tad, but never bore you.

As adult romancers, Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd) and Callie (Carrie Coon) are charming and clueless enough for us to beg for more time with them. Finn Wolfhard (star of Stranger Things) as brother Trevor (just enough of Timothee Chalamet in his look) and the gifted comic kid, Logan Kim, as Podcast will make teens, and us all, quite happy with their shenanigans.

A sweet comic atmosphere prevails over this successful sequel. I hope it's enough to get you back to the theater where hosts serve up comfy seats, knockout sound, and fantasy relief from the pandemic.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife fmovies. GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE (2021) *** Carrie Coon, Paul Rudd, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Logan Kim, Celeste O' Connor, Bill Murray, Dany Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, Sigourney Weaver, JK Simmons, Olivia Wilde. (voices of : Josh Gad & Shohreh Aghdashloo). Filmmaker Jason Reitman, son of executive producer and director of the original comedy horror classic, returns the franchise true to form in this valentine to the team of paranormal exterminators with the Spengler family retiring to their estranged paterfamilias Egon (the late, great Harold Ramis) where his granddaughter (Grace, in a winning and often uncanny turn as the famed comedian) discovers her grandfather's plans to stop the return of Gozer the Gozarian to return for another shot at destroying the world, while in the process of uniting her family in their new Mid-west environs. Reitman, who co-wrote with Gil Kenan the chock block of Easter eggs screenplay that wisely incorporates its source material with its new cast (the weight of the legacy rests well on the slender yet able shoulders of Grace, the heart of the film). Fun mix of visuals and much welcomed extended cameos make for a heckuva night at the cineplex.

This reboot of sorts did it all right in terms of being respectful to the original, maintaining a plausible storyline, and having awesome cameos. The story was a bit slow to develop but had some cool moments and a lot of small laughs. All of this proudly sponsored by Walmart.

"Callie" (Carrie Coon) is a bit short of cash, so must retreat to her late father's dilapidated pile with her son "Trevor" (Finn Wolfhard) and geeky daughter "Phoebe" (Mckenna Grace). When the young girl discovers that she has a chess partner that she cannot see, then a "ghost trap" under their frequently shaking old house, she and her brother - alongside her seismologist teacher "Gary Grooberson" (Paul Rudd) are soon doing what it says on the tin. It takes for ever to get going, this film - far too much time is spent on character development and by the time it actually gets up to speed I was just a little bit bored. It is redeemed by the last ten minutes, to a certain extent, but I could have been doing with a bit more of Rudd's character - and quite a few more ghosts to bust. It looks ok, the effects are fine - there is just a paucity of them - and the two youngsters work well together with a decent (if wordy) script that has some amusing scientist jokes.