MOVIE REVIEW: GHOSTBUSTERS: FROZEN EMPIRE

 

The Spengler family returns to the iconic New York City firehouse where the original Ghostbusters have taken ghost-busting to the next level. When the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must unite to protect their home and save the world from a second ice age.

Director: Gil Kenan

Cast: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Celeste O'Connor, Logan Kim, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, William Atherton, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt

Release Date: March 22, 2024

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Rated PG-13 for supernatural action/violence, language and suggestive references.

Runtime: 1h 55m

Review:

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is an overly busy movie that tries to juggle the new, legacy and expansion aspects of the franchise with mixed results.  Gil Kenan is perfectly capable of matching the feel of the original film but the tone is strangely uneven.  There are portions that channel the original's goofy charm aided by appearances from some of the original characters.  Unfortunately, it never maintains that sort of comedic energy instead veering into a more serious tone which feels off for this franchise.  The rather large cast is game throughout but the overabundance of characters makes it difficult for the film to maintain any sort of focus.  Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon have fun while they're onscreen providing an appropriate level of parent energy as their family unit has taken over the Ghostbusters.  Rudd's goofy charm is perfectly suited for this role and he's clearly having a ball playing in this sandbox.  He and Coon have solid chemistry together but the film doesn't spend nearly enough time with them or their kids, played by Finn Wolfhard and Mckenna Grace, which is a strange choice since they were the main characters in the 2021 refresh.  Grace is still able to channel Harold Ramis's Spengler energy but she's given a rather silly subplot considering the character's general intelligence.  Wolfhard's character doesn't fare much better with a rather clichéd storyline.  Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson have significant roles here but the script never bothers to give their characters any sort of background about how they ended up as a supernatural trader and Men in Black style director of a Ghostbusters R&D department.  Annie Potts and Bill Murray both pop up but they aren't asked to do much except provide a few quips here and there with the script more concerned with overlong exposition dumps about the central villain.  In the end, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire feels like a missed opportunity that forgets that these film are supposed to be fun more than anything else something it doesn't do nearly often enough. 

C+

MOVIE REVIEW: GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE

 

When a single mother and her two children move to a new town, they soon discover they have a connection to the original Ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather left behind.

Director: Jason Reitman

Cast: Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Paul Rudd, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts

Release Date: November 19, 2021

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

Rated PG-13 for supernatural action and some suggestive references

Runtime: 2h 4m

Review:

Ghostbusters: Afterlife peddles heavily in nostalgia but unfortunately it doesn’t bring much new to the table.  Jason Reitman’s film decides to follow the J. J. Abrams template of franchise revivals by lifting memorable moments from the original film and repackaging them with a new cast.  That’s not to say the film doesn’t have it’s moments where it comes to life due to a capable cast but it never really hits the sweet spot. Mckenna Grace is the film’s best addition as she delivers a fun, enjoyable performance as Ego’s granddaughter.  She has an air of authenticity and earnestness that works in the film’s favor.  Logan Kim is her defacto sidekick and they share some solid comedic chemistry which is rare among younger performers.  Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon deliver workman like performances unfortunately the script doesn’t take advantage of their talents.  The original cast appears in what amounts to extended cameos and the film works in the late Harold Ramis with mixed results.  Ultimately, Ghostbusters: Afterlife feels like it should have left a bigger impression but it’s mostly forgettable. 

C

Cindy Prascik is Takin’ it to the Sewers: It

Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for the first big-screen stab at Stephen King's It.

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know or have guessed from the trailers.

A group of young outcasts faces off with an ancient evil that haunts their town.

Disclaimers: While I am a fan of both the book and the original TV mini-series adaptation of It, I'm many moons removed from revisiting either, so you'll find little by way of comparison here. Also, for the record, I like clowns.

Regular reader(s) may recall I don't have much love for modern horror. Mostly I find it a series of cheap startles and gross outs. I have four cats, so I needn't pay for either; I can step out of bed into a hairball any o'l time. It has a fair bit of blood and guts and some of the effects are lame enough they could be right out of the film's late-80s setting, but it is much more than just a horror movie.

As with the earlier TV version, 2017's It has an air of melancholy that reaches to the very depths of the story, the town, and the characters. It's not just about missing children; it's about an unhappy home life and not fitting in and, from an adult standpoint, those childhood connections that invariably fade and disappear with time. The movie's visual tone beautifully conveys the uneasy mood, along with some legitimately great acting by the young principals. It's a common complaint of mine that kid actors, even when they're good, are generally "good for kid actors," but these kids are GOOD, and that's to a person, not one weak link. As for Pennywise himself, filmmakers have worked to make him as horrific as possible, but the frights are mostly down to to timing, makeup, and effects rather than to Bill Skarsgard's performance. (Editorial note: Incessant drooling is not scary and I'm not a fan.) It is smartly-crafted enough to more than make up for any small complaints, though, a suspenseful thriller highlighted by outstanding performances and enough gore and jump-scares to keep horror fans happy.

It clocks in at 135 minutes and is rated R for "violence/horror, bloody images, and language."

Send in the clowns! Of a possible nine Weasleys, It gets eight and a half.

Fangirl points: Keep those ears open for pieces of Anthrax' Antisocial and XTC's Dear God!

Until next time...

MOVIE REVIEW: IT

Seven young outcasts in Derry, Maine, are about to face their worst nightmare -- an ancient, shape-shifting evil that emerges from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town's children. Banding together over the course of one horrifying summer, the friends must overcome their own personal fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise.

Director: Andy Muschietti

Cast: Bill Skarsgård, Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Wyatt Oleff, Chosen Jacobs, Jack Dylan Grazer, Nicholas Hamilton, Jackson Robert Scott

Release Date: Sept 9, 2017

Genres: Drama, Horror

Rated R for violence/horror, bloody images, and for language

Review:

I’ve been a huge fan of Stephen King for most of my life.  Strangely though 2 of his books really never connected with me, The Dark Tower series and IT.  The latter I tried to make it through before just giving up.  Ultimately, clowns just never scared me much, I actually like clowns, so maybe the scares never landed as intended.  This new film version suffers, just a tad, from the same effect.  Bill Skarsgård is great as Pennywise, even though it feels a bit more like old school Freddy Kruger more often than not, but I was ever really scared throughout the film.  That’s not to say it’s a bad film, far from it, IT just isn’t very scary.  That being said, a big chunk of the credit for the film’s success has to go to director Andy Muschietti and his preteen cast.  Muschietti directs a well crafted, borrowing bits and pieces from the best King adaptor Frank Darabont, piece that captures that all important feel of King’s works.  There’s a slight Stand by Me feel to the proceedings even though the film is set in the late 80’s.  The cast delivers excellent performances throughout, making you care about each character’s journey.  Jaeden Lieberher and Sophia Lillis in particular stand out for the authenticity of their performances.  IT is an excellent film even if it doesn’t make you hide under your covers after you see it.

B+