Image by Andrew Martin from Pixabay
Ghostbusters - Ivan Reitman
This is the 1984 original I’m reviewing. There will no comparison to the newer version. And really how could there be – Bill Murray – need I say anymore.
The dialogue is bloody terrific. We are met with many quotable pearls throughout. Not only is the dialogue brilliant it’s delivery is on point. We have the great ensemble cast to thank that for.
Dr. Peter Venkman, Bill Murray (Lost in Translation & Groundhog Day), is super deadpan – after the dollars and gaming the system wherever possible.
Dr. Egon Spengler, Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day & Stripes), is the brains of the operation. He brings the knowledge and information to the story, but he has depth and isn’t the butt of jokes as the stereotyped nerdy guy.
Dr. Raymond Stantz, Dan Aykroyd (The Blues Brothers & Trading Places) is the glue that holds the team together. There is no way that Venkman and Spengler could operate without Stantz.
Simple Story - Well Executed
The story is quite simply Gozer is coming to destroy the world and the Ghost Busters need to stop it. This is the driving force for both sides and every scene plays towards this central plot.
The catalyst is perfect. Following their first encounter with a ghost all three of the doctors are expelled from university and their grants cut. They had a simple choice at this point – go their separate ways or become the ghost busters. One leads to the fantastic tale we are told and the other leads to no story at all. Not really a choice, but it is one the characters faced and it was very well setup.
All of the other story beats are handled with similar skill. Another particularly good point is the crisis. They convince the mayor to release them from jail. They take their understanding what the building was designed for. This scene also has the best line in the film – “Yes it is true, this man has no dick.” Laugh out loud hilarity and it wasn’t just from when I watched it many years ago.
Image by Ian Lindsay from Pixabay
How do effects from the 80s hold up?
Pretty good truth be told. The best way to describe them is camp. All the explosions and spirits are glowing and sparkly. This fits really well with the feel of the film and because of this choice they hold up well.
The only time it looks bad is when the beings aren’t spectral. Like the hounds, they look a bit silly when they are bounding around the apartment complex. The ghosts look fantastic – especially the one at the start of the film.
What were the problems?
So some of the effects weren’t great as noted above. Apart from that there is only one thing that I had a problem with. The giant explosion at the end, at the apartment complex, does basically no damage to the building. All the characters should have died. Someone just went a bit over the top with the pyrotechnics I think.
