Spooktober: Ghostbusters 2

Following on from the 1984 classic, Ghostbusters 2 sets to bring bigger stakes and more out-of-this-world action.

Whether you’re a fan of the sequel or not, the movie is a must see for future incarnations and overall has some great scenes if you look past the bad.

For a start the characters are elevated further in this movie, now having a deeper understanding of how these characters think and act like, the movie pushes for stronger group interactions and more comedic moments.

And finally Winston gets some time to shine, now no longer appearing half-way through the movie, audiences are allowed to get to know the character on a more personal level along with the rest of the cast.

I do also love the sidestory or rather this romance story between Rick Moranis’ character and Annie Potts’. It does rely on a lot of humour but when you have actors as great as they are, it doesn’t feel cheesy or drawn out in the slightest. I also love the way the two plots still intermingle, with the pair having to look after Dana’s baby which ultimately gets taken while in their care.

As mentioned before, this movie more so than its predecessor shifts to have more comedic moments. Whether this was because of studio meddling and angry letters from enraged parents, I’m not so sure. A lot of jokes land, but some do miss the mark entirely, a theme you see in later reboots.

Ghostbusters 2 heightens the action in the form of an old painting and pink slime, personally I found the threat was weaker than Gozer; perhaps that’s why they revisited the character in Ghostbusters: Afterlife.

Although there is definitely some risk, what with a baby in jeopardy, overall, the entire city doesn’t feel a stake but just the main cast. And when comparing that to the previous movie, it does feel a little empty.

The Ghostbusters lose their iconic costumes in favour of a more navy blue aesthetic, I’m not opposed to them but I do question why they changed it up? Is it because they made the suits out of better material or is there an in-universe reason, perhaps there’s something built into the suits that protects them from ghosts?

But I will say I love all the promotional art featuring the main duo wearing Christmas hats, and on that note does this count as a Christmas movie? If people can call Die Hard a Christmas movie because it’s set at Christmas, then surely this counts too?

Something I feel this movie could have done either just very quickly or perhaps in its own little 30 minute story was explore the disbanded relationship between Bill Murray’s character Peter Venkman and Sigourney Weaver’s character Dana.

Although the movie does briefly explain why they split apart, I’d rather have the old-fashioned show don’t tell mentality. Show me what their romantic life was like, show me the nagging and ‘ball-and chain’ jokes. I want to see the progression of their relationship fall apart, maybe then I’d feel more pity for Dana.

Personally, I feel like the standout star in these movies is Egon Spengler. Any scene he’s in is always a treat and his comedy is always on point, simply because it isn’t meant to be funny. Egon is a very serious man, but you can’t hold back laughter when he’s trying to be serious while doing or saying something strange like “Now take away the puppy” while watching a small child be happy with said puppy.

He embraces humour without meaning to, for example, in this movie there’s a scene where the gang need to dig underground on a very public road; so they pose as construction men. Egon is left on his own, digging, when two policemen come up to him and question what he’s doing.

Luckily Venkman and Stanz come to save him and the three start talking with thick New York accents while complaining about working on a Friday night and having to stop digging this hole. I described it poorly but the scene is such a treat when you reach it.

All in all, Ghostbusters 2 isn’t the best movie sequel to ever grace our screens but it isn’t the worst. The movie has its moments, with great comedy and character interactions. But it does disappoint with its villains and general action scenes.

Ghostbusters 2 gets 2 out of 5 Ecto 1’s from me.