Ghostbusters
1984, Columbia Pictures et al
I'm certain my dislike of Saturday Night Live had a great deal to do with my dislike of this franchise, in particular Bill Murray. There are too many stylistic similarities with Mel Brooks' brand of... ahem... humor, made worse by vague in crowd winks, as if us ordinary folk aren't in on certain jokes. How Sigourney Weaver got roped into this embarrassingly juvenile excuse for "comedy sci-fi" is beyond me.
DKS 3/13/23
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
Ghostbusters II
1989, Columbia Pictures
A pointless sequel that only succeeded in making matters worse... although the first was already at the bottom of my ratings scale. After this, I didn't bother with the rest of the franchise, Ghostbusters: Answer the Call and Ghostbusters: Afterlife.
DKS DKS 3/13/23
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
2021, Columbia Pictures
What a serious turnaround! I wouldn't have bothered with it except that friends assured me it was worth my time. And indeed it was. Bill Murray was mercifully limited to a cameo at the end, and he wasn't annoying enough to spoil the rest of the film. Although it does get a little wild and crazy toward the climax, with a surfeit of heavy-duty over-the-top hocus-pocus, it has enough well-defined, interesting characters supported by good performances to compensate. Indeed, I must offer special kudos for young Mckenna Grace, who played our heroine with great gusto.
DKS 10/11/23
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
