Ghostbusters 2016 Review

A lot of the time it kind of sucks to be at the threshold of a late Gen-X/Early Millenial. Getting all the slack stick associated with Generation X but never really growing up with the nostalgic properties that defines so much of their culture. Sometimes though it's a boon. By coming relatively late to things like Ghostbusters or Transformers (still never seen the 1986 film) I was able to view them as works of art and not the entirety of my childhood. So just as I was able to view Transformers as a bad film, rather than some great desecration, I was able to come to 2016's reboot of Ghostbusters with an open mind. Hell, despite that fact that I was rooting for this all-female line up I was even able to recognise that it has major flaws in the writing and editing that drag it just short of being great.

So yes, after all the hype it turns out that Ghostbusters 2016 is...fine. Not a disaster but also not making anyone's top ten at the end of the year. A broad, cartoonish, character-based action comedy saved from the doldrums of mere adequacy by the strong chemistry between its cast and an outright star-making turn from SNL comedian Kate McKinnon.

To lead such a merely adequate film we have Kristen Wiig-american comedy's poster child for adequacy-once again opposite Bridesmaids co-star Melissa McCarthy-American Comedy's poster child for awesome! Both play accomplished scientists who once closely collaborated on a book about the paranormal but Wiig's character Abbey now wants nothing to do with. However the book leads McCarthy's Erin Gilbert (her first real 'straight' role) and engineer Jillian Holtzmann (McKinnon) to a series of powerful apparitions being empowered by a mysterious figure. When one of these apparitions draws the attention of historian Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones) she offers to join the group as a guide, completing the Ghostbusters team.

From the outset the film is peppered with sharp comic lines that, thanks to a cast of comedy alumni, always hit their mark. What jokes don't work are usually the ones built around garish CGI ghosts that never manage to tow the original's line of equal parts Lovecraftian horror and Three Stooges antics. With the exception of a few well-executed scares the film never generates a strong buildup of tension to be undercut with a suitable punchline. Indeed halfway through the film begins to even suffer the original's problem of being overly reliant of slapstick set pieces.

What jokes do work are those built around the characters, their relationship to one another and how they view the world. From Abbey's failed attempts to maintain composure in the face of the ridiculous to Patty's world-weary attitude to the supernatural. Erin and Abbey's relationship is the connective glue to it all built on a sincere bedrock of friendship with just enough difference in personas to generate conflict. But as you've probably heard the real MVP is Holtzmann, a melting pot of weirdness and tech-fetishes that steals every scene she's in. McKinnon's delivery is always out of left field and perfectly timed. They're the kind of jokes that work on multiple-levels as anyone who's ever been 'the weird one' in a group of friends will perfectly understand.

Finally kudos needs to go to Chris Helmswoth who's likely been nursing a desire to branch out into comedy. His useless secretary is a beautiful hodgepodge of dumb blonde cliches punching upward at handsome male entitlement. That the writers just never run out of ways for him to be inept, idiotic or unjustifiably smug is an accomplishment in itself. Though the jokes made about him do tend to wear thin towards the third act.

Ah yes, the third act that easily forms the films biggest problem. To be fair there are editing problems across the board including the hastily added scene of the group snarkily reading hateful internet comments (subtle Feig, real subtle). But it's clear that some scenes designed to split the group have been removed without much afterthought. New York being transformed into different periods of time feels like something that should have been more fleshed out in the whole film and would have better demonstrated Patty's intellectual prowess. Whatever was intended though feels mostly shelved with the Avengers-style big climax mostly covered by green screen effects instead.

So we find 2016's Ghostbusters a touch uneven but satisfying nonetheless. Thankfully what it gets wrong feel like tertiary elements that just knock it down to three-star territory. Whereas what it gets right i.e. the tone and chemistry between the four leads are what elevate away from being a complete disaster.