So
this is one of the best comedies of all time. It's perfectly cast (to
the extent that the movie really feels crafted around the leads),
perfectly written, brilliantly dry, wonderfully shot and excellently
scored. The quadruplet of Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and
(director) Ivan Reitman really make this movie (oh and Ernie Hudson
was good too - actually, so was Moranis and Potts and Weaver,
though Peter's intentions in that romantic plot line never felt
totally legitimate to me, Dana deserves better.) It's not a film
about ghosts at all - all of the sci-fi elements are just backdrop to
these guy's amazing chemistry with one another.
There
was a lot of ad-libbing going on, which often turns me off, but
they're obviously so happy with one another that it works. Murray
delivers characteristically great punchlines (as well as consistently
maintaining an air of dry humour), Ramis plays the socially
dysfunctional straight man (though limiting his contribution to this
is a little insulting), Aykroyd is believably weird (because he is,
and I love him). The plot starts fairly grounded, and gradually
escalates in insanity until the final reveal of the giant Stay Puft
marshmallow man. This film isn't just not scary, it actively combats
both horror and the supernatural. Science is what defeats the ghosts
(and multidimensional gods) in the end, not reading backwards from
the book of evil. Comedy plays a similar role, as none of the ghosts
(save Slimer) are particularly funny - it all comes from how the
characters act in these situations. I like it when my expectations
are met with the reverse like this, and this film does it so well
that I often compare it to 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' on that point.
And
I love that these guys are just normal people, you know? They don't
do crazy flips or anything - they don't even really know what to do
most of the time. They're likeable and feel real, which is just what
you want in a protagonist.
The
idea of battling ghosts with scientific equipment isn't such a big deal
anymore, with all those shitty paranormal inpector TV shows, but back then it was a neat
original idea, and combined with the brilliant comedy of the three
main characters, has made 'Ghostbusters' a timeless classic.
Ghostbusters: 90.0