Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Ghostbusters’ (2016)

3/20/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Kristin Wiig, and Leslie Jones as Dr. Abby Yates, Dr. Jillian Holtzmann, Dr. Erin Gilbert, and Patty Tolan in ‘Ghostbusters’ (2016). (Photo Courtesy of Columbia/Sony Pictures.)

It seems that every single franchise out there, be it via book, film, or television, has a story that is more or less the ‘embarrassment of the family.’ One that divided the fans, brought out ire, and continues to be regarded as the worst thing to ever grace that saga. Which is fascinating to say the least, that a single story can inspire such fury and such disdain. But it does indeed happen, and what’s fascinating about this response, is that it tends to just stick with the story in question. Allowing for it to live in infamy when in fact, it might not be as terrible as the collective hive mind of some fans seem to think.

Because no one sets out to make rough movies, mistakes happen, influences are at play, and sometimes the wrong release schedule can bring about problems too. Meaning these films may have more to them than meets the eye. Not to mention, when they reach that infamous stage, they are seen with such anger that no one can celebrate the good they do harbor or understand what made them fail in the first place. Which is why perhaps it is time to discuss less what we straight up ‘hate’ about a film and look at what worked and what didn’t. To better understand why it ignites such negative discourse and perhaps expose how such mistakes can be avoided by other filmmakers down the line. Hence why today, we are going to do just that for the ‘embarrassment’ of the Ghostbusters franchise, the 2016 remake/reboot.

For people just HATE this movie through and through, and they seem to despise it for a number of wild reasons. For some go on and on about how there’s some kind of problem with having four female leads take the reins of the franchise, as though somehow women cannot carry a major project in the slightest. Plus, there are others who rip on the script and call it trash, there’s some that have an issue with the humor and how it was executed and well… all of those complaints and the fire they ignite really does make it difficult to see what went wrong with this movie. Because those are all mob mentality reasons that are easy for other like-minded folks to get behind. When in fact, there are some very easy issues to isolate within this film.

None of which relate to the core complaints in the slightest. Because really, the issue with this film, is that it plays it safe and basically recreates the original movie’s plot. Which is problematic because this is a franchise that shakes things up and takes risks with its stories, and cloning the plot of the OGB offers none of that. Not to mention, it tries to recreate nostalgia with characters that have no tie to the nostalgia. Ergo, throwbacks and cameos from the original cast just don’t quite work like they should and feel out of place and awkward and those are the elements that didn’t allow for audiences to connect with it. Plain and simple. Which is important to isolate and spotlight so we can find things to celebrate within this movie.

Because the fact of the matter is, the cast is amazing here. For Kristin Wiig, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon, and Melissa McCarthy are talented comedians, who deliver great jokes and silly moments here that do invoke that particular spirit (pun intended) of the franchise through and through. And everyone in this film has fun with their roles and plays them well. Not to mention, it is indeed a special effects treat, since the ghosts look amazing and the Times Square parade sequence is about as epic and fun as it gets. So, clearly… the issue at hand was never that ‘girls can’t be Ghostbusters’ crap or any such nonsense of that vein. This was a movie that tried to recreate lightning in a bottle when it had the chance to do something special and new.

Which makes this… a mediocre entry at best. Because we’ve seen it before, we’ve enjoyed it before. We just get nicer CGI in this one over the practical stuff that the original team handled. But by no means does this movie deserve the wild hate it received, and it is important that the Ghostbusters here are women. For stories are for everyone and there’s nothing wrong with a girl seeing this at home and wanting to be a Ghostbuster. Because that’s what entertainment is supposed to do, connect, and inspire. So, in the end, while this indeed a polarizing and despised film, it’s not the childhood-ruining disaster some claim. It’s just okay, and it does no harm or no damage. It’s just a silly watch and it did influence change for the franchise, going forward.

Watch ‘Ghostbusters’ (2016)

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