Director: Paul Feig
Cast: Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon,
Leslie Jones, Chris Hemsworth
Release Date: Jul
15, 2016
Rated PG-13 for supernatural action and some crude humor.
Runtime: 1 hr. 47 min.
Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Review:
Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters isn’t the disaster many
predicted but it’s not good enough on it’s own to prove it was necessary
either. I’m one of the few people who
always liked Ghostbusters but was never in love with it even though I grew up
with it. There’s a definite fondness for
the original film but I never really thought it was sacrilegious to remake it
with women. The director and cast do the
best with what they have but it’s clear that there’s an issue with the
story. The overall plot hits a lot of
the same notes that the original did but with a more generic punch. As the film goes on, it does feel like
everybody is reigning it in a bit, making me wish they’d decided to go for a
full on R rated comedy. I think that
would have been a better choice for this director and cast. As is, the cast is solid throughout with
Chris Hemsworth leaving the biggest impression by displaying some strong
comedic chops. The film is a tad
overlong by about 20 minutes or with some noticeable dead spots that could have
been easily excised. The Ghostbusters’
remake isn’t a train wreck but it’s not as good as it should have been to
justify its existence.
C+
