Ghostbusters Frozen Empire

Yeah as much as I enjoyed Afterlife, I admit some of the backstory they created for Egon does strike me as a bit odd and out of character. Although to be fair we didn't really get to know him that well in the first two movies, and he was a pretty strange and awkward guy who I can see being so devoted to his work that he neglected his daughter. And he certainly wouldn't be the first father to have done that.

I think it's all very in keeping with his blunt, "print is dead" character. He's not father material.

Ticket for Sunday

Just got out of the movie and... thought it was alright. Had some fun moments and was very watchable... but the story is all over the place and really lacked the focus, heart and sense of wonder that Afterlife had (at least for those of us who enjoyed that movie). And aside from Nanjiani who is always fun to watch, there's way too many characters in this who are not remotely worth the screen time. And also a lot of buildup to a villain who only comes across as mildly threatening in the end.

Even seeing the OGs yet again doesn't feel nearly as cool as it once did, and Bill Murray is only in maybe 5 more minutes than last time. And I almost think it would have been better to leave them out entirely, since it's frankly getting a bit sad seeing them run around in jumpsuits at this point.

Another thing I noticed is that despite being set entirely in New York, the movie is completely lacking in any of that New York energy that the first two movies had, and you can really tell that little of it was actually shot there.

Anyway here's my ranking in the end:

Ghostbusters-----10/10 (obviously)
Ghostbusters 2----8/10
Afterlife-----------7/10
Frozen Empire----5/10

After the low RT score and so-so reviews, my expectations were significantly lowered going into this movie. Instead it was quite enjoyable and much better than I thought it would be. Certainly not the OG Ghostbusters (which I saw in the theater) but I would put it on par with Afterlife. The biggest issue was juggling so many characters, but the story was solid enough, and included nice callbacks and fan service. I give it a 7/10 - 7.5/10.

It’s unrealistic for folks to expect a repeat of a 40-year old experience (they couldn’t even do it with GB2) and unfortunate that virtually every movie has to be politicized. At the end of the day, it’s a fun family movie.

Thought we were going to get a teenage lesbian ghost kiss there for a moment!

Ghostbusters are celebrated at the end for a saving New York from a problem they caused!!

Paul Rudd driving the Ecto1 like a mad man through the crowded streets of New York!

Sumerian God in a spandex leotard with foam mutts > Silly blurry CGI thing with horns.

Overall it was fine but it's movie you can tell they tried too hard. There are just too many characters at this point. This is a series that truly should have been one and done.

EVILFACE said:

Thought we were going to get a teenage lesbian ghost kiss there for a moment!

Ghostbusters are celebrated at the end for a saving New York from a problem they caused!!

Paul Rudd driving the Ecto1 like a mad man through the crowded streets of New York!

Sumerian God in a spandex leotard with foam mutts > Silly blurry CGI thing with horns.

Overall it was fine but it's movie you can tell they tried too hard. There are just too many characters at this point. This is a series that truly should have been one and done.

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Oh yeah there was clearly some sexual tension there and I wouldn't be surprised if a kiss got cut out at the end so as to not rile up the conservative crowd.

And yeah it did crack me up that so much of this mess was entirely the fault of the Ghostbusters and Phoebe herself for screwing around with things they shouldn't and making some truly idiotic decisions.

I think most of the problem comes from a desire to expand this world for future sequels with Winston's research facility. As it just brings in too many characters and gets too far away from the original idea of a small group of misfits and scientists scrambling to make a buck and keep their small business afloat.

At this point, the only Ghostbusters movie I'd watch is a realistically animated (ie, not cartoony) adaptation of the Ghostbusters Video game with the audio the OG Ghostbusters recorded for the game. These new characters are uninteresting and poor replacements, the OG Ghostbusters are too old, and Harold Ramis passed away. The audio exists, why not make this the long lost third sequel?
We might have to wait for the fans to make this with AI with the way Hollywood thinks.

Ghostbusters Frozen Empire 8/10

Well color me shocked. That was really fun! Full disclosure , I was a fan of Afterlife. And find it a fun rewatch.

Actually , I put this one second in my Ghostbuster ratings list. As I am NOT a fan of GB2.

That film was just stupid all the way around, had zero scary parts and was basically a vehicle for Bill Murray to act like an ass. The only saving factor to GB2 is the cast were really able to make the most of that stupid plot.

Frozen Empire really had my family laughing, and what's more, the theater was laughing TOGETHER. Some thing that is so rare these days. Add in a few really creepy stuff, the general likness of all the cast. Shortened Billy Murray stuff, and extended Dan Ackroyd parts, and you have a genuine winner.

Over all

GB 10/10
GB FE 8/10
GB AL 7/10
GB2 5/10
GB 2016 6/10

Yeah I know that's gonna ruffle some feathers , but I was a teen when GB2 came out and it was super disappointing to me....kinda like Phantom Menace disappointed me in my 20's

I suppose a lot of GB2 fans were 7-13 at the time it released

And GB 2016 is actually really really funny if people could get past the anger that the original cast wouldn't do it. Thats all on Murray also BTW....Too many people made that film a culture war icon, but if you can get past that stupid idea, it's a fun film.

Yeah GB2 was a big disappointment when it came out, and felt pretty thin and uninspired compared to the original... but it's strangely grown on me quite a bit since then (much like with BTTF 2, Batman Returns, Alien 3, and other sequels I didn't care much for at the beginning). I guess mainly because it's one more chance to see the OG's in their prime doing their thing, and because ultimately I do find it a lot more fun and memorable than anything in Afterlife or Frozen Empire.

xipotec said:

Ghostbusters Frozen Empire 8/10

Well color me shocked. That was really fun! Full disclosure , I was a fan of Afterlife. And find it a fun rewatch.

Actually , I put this one second in my Ghostbuster ratings list. As I am NOT a fan of GB2.

That film was just stupid all the way around, had zero scary parts and was basically a vehicle for Bill Murray to act like an ass. The only saving factor to GB2 is the cast were really able to make the most of that stupid plot.

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I remember GB2 being disappointing/boarder line bad back when I saw it. Like you I was older (17) and it just was such a disappointment compared to the original.

Having said that I appreciate parts of it more than I did then. The courtroom scene with Rick Moranis is better than anything in any of the follow ups. We disagree on Bill Murray as I always liked him in that film. The rest is…. Ok. Bad villain and ending hurt this film 100%

xipotec said:

Frozen Empire really had my family laughing, and what's more, the theater was laughing TOGETHER. Some thing that is so rare these days. Add in a few really creepy stuff, the general likness of all the cast. Shortened Billy Murray stuff, and extended Dan Ackroyd parts, and you have a genuine winner.

Over all

GB 10/10
GB FE 8/10
GB AL 7/10
GB2 5/10
GB 2016 6/10

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I did not care for afterlife at all as it felt cheap, was just hitting all the GB plot points with Gozer and I don’t think it offered up one funny moment other than a Bill Murray line

We are really on different sides of the GB fence here accept for one.

xipotec said:

And GB 2016 is actually really really funny if people could get past the anger that the original cast wouldn't do it. Thats all on Murray also BTW....Too many people made that film a culture war icon, but if you can get past that stupid idea, it's a fun film.

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Oh man here is where we really differ.

I didn’t hate the movie when I first saw in in the theaters as it wasn’t the mess I thought it would be.

But funny??? You will have to point me to the funny moments in that one. I smiled once and that was it. I usually really like Kristen Wiig but thought her and the rest of the cast were pretty bad.

There were no real jokes just all ad-libbing and poorly done ad-libbing at that imo.

And while I did not hate it the first time, a 2nd viewing really showed all the warts and just how bad and really annoying the film was.

Obviously humor is subjective but you’re one of the only people I’ve ever heard say this movie was actually funny. Are you a bot

But here is where we agree. Murray ****** all this up all these years never giving us the chance to see a proper GB sequel.

But let’s be honest GB1 was lighting in a bottle and I don’t think it could ever be captured again

davejames said:

Yeah GB2 was a big disappointment when it came out, and felt pretty thin and uninspired compared to the original... but it's strangely grown on me quite a bit since then (much like with BTTF 2, Batman Returns, Alien 3, and other sequels I didn't care much for at the beginning). I guess mainly because it's one more chance to see the OG's in their prime doing their thing, and because ultimately I do find it a lot more fun and memorable than anything in Afterlife or Frozen Empire.

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I’ve always loved BTTF 2. It’s the 3rd one I didn’t like and still find it incredibly weak.

I agree about Alien 3. I loathed it on first viewing but have come to love it especially the assembly cut. In fact there are moments in that film that are some of my favs in the series.

I warmed up to GB2 also over the years

I don’t get what peeps saw / see in afterlife other than it wasn’t the 2016 version.

Still not sure if I’ll see the new one in theaters.

I really wanted to see this in the theater, but I'll wait now...

JAWS said:

I did not care for afterlife at all as it felt cheap, was just hitting all the GB plot points with Gozer and I don’t think it offered up one funny moment other than a Bill Murray line

We are really on different sides of the GB fence here accept for one.

Oh man here is where we really differ.

I didn’t hate the movie when I first saw in in the theaters as it wasn’t the mess I thought it would be.

But funny??? You will have to point me to the funny moments in that one. I smiled once and that was it. I usually really like Kristen Wiig but thought her and the rest of the cast were pretty bad.

There were no real jokes just all ad-libbing and poorly done ad-libbing at that imo.

And while I did not hate it the first time, a 2nd viewing really showed all the warts and just how bad and really annoying the film was.

Obviously humor is subjective but you’re one of the only people I’ve ever heard say this movie was actually funny. Are you a bot

But here is where we agree. Murray ****** all this up all these years never giving us the chance to see a proper GB sequel.

But let’s be honest GB1 was lighting in a bottle and I don’t think it could ever be captured again

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Yeah the rehashing of the Gozer plot is the biggest issue with Afterlife, but I think all the stuff with Phoebe and the family works really well, along with the warm, nostalgic tone and the gradual way they reintroduce the Ghostbusters lore. But it's definitely a very different style from GB1 and 2, so I can understand why it doesn't work for everyone.

As for the 2016 film, I actually do think it has a lot of great lines and good laughs in it thanks to all the great comedic actors involved. Everything McKinnon does in it cracks me up, along with Chris Hemsworth's goofy character. And it does have a lot of that subversive humor and New York energy the original film did.

The biggest issue is just that the origin story is a complete rehash of the original, and the humor leans far too heavily into slapstick territory, which makes it feel more like an SNL spoof than a real movie with believable characters.

Why was the Frozen Demon so lame?

davejames said:

Yeah the rehashing of the Gozer plot is the biggest issue with Afterlife, but I think all the stuff with Phoebe and the family works really well, along with the warm, nostalgic tone and the gradual way they reintroduce the Ghostbusters lore. But it's definitely a very different style from GB1 and 2, so I can understand why it doesn't work for everyone.

As for the 2016 film, I actually do think it has a lot of great lines and good laughs in it thanks to all the great comedic actors involved. Everything McKinnon does in it cracks me up, along with Chris Hemsworth's goofy character. And it does have a lot of that subversive humor and New York energy the original film did.

The biggest issue is just that the origin story is a complete rehash of the original, and the humor leans far too heavily into slapstick territory, which makes it feel more like an SNL spoof than a real movie with believable characters.

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I’m not a McKinnon fan. In fact I tend to avoid her films at all costs lol.

Hemsworth did nothing for me.

SNL hasn’t been funny in years so the skit comparison is perfect lol

I can’t remember the last time I saw a funny comedy tbh. Do they even make comedies anymore?

JAWS said:

I can’t remember the last time I saw a funny comedy tbh. Do they even make comedies anymore?

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They don't, but not for lack of trying. Problem is the industry is now largely run by people who wouldn't recognize a joke if it hit them straight in the face

I’ve never seen GB 2016, nor do I plan to. Not because I thought the gender swap was “woke” but because I thought it was a dumb idea with no real connective tissue to the original Ghostbusters (maybe there was, but it doesn’t matter). I wasn’t crazy about the cast and the trailers weren’t very good. Conversely, Afterlife and Frozen Empire have connective tissue in the form of generational continuation. The one thing is that the franchise is moving away from being an adult comedy (GB&GB2) to a family comedy (AL&FE). I can understand how some fans would have a problem with that type of tonal change, versus the folks who simply want to trash every movie out of hand. Rebooting Ghostbusters as an adult comedy with a new cast would be extremely tricky. Maybe that will happen in another 5-10 years if the family comedy direction doesn’t work out.

I just think the idea is played out, regardless of who they cast or what tone they go for. Most of the fun of the first movie was watching those guys figure things out for the first time, and put together this crazy ghost busting business that no one takes seriously. But now everything is so routine that there's no surprise left. And it's clear by now they'll never find a better villain than Gozer.

Based Egon!