Review of Ghostbusters (1984) by Cameronius_113 — 15 Jan 2017

Ghostbusters was released in 1984 and was directed by Ivan Reitman. It is about a group of scientists who are failing at their current job and decide to open up a business for catching ghosts after many ghost sightings have been heard about in New York.

The main reason this movie stands out is the characters, most notably the Ghostbusters themselves. They feel like real people and the reason for that I believe is because most of their lines were made up by the actors as they went along and in real life people make up what they say as they go along which adds a sense of realism. Bill Murrary absolutely steals the show; he's funny, his character is likeable and feels real. All of the characters have great portrayals and all tell good jokes but Murray is the stand-out of the lot.

The movie may seem like it's aimed at kids with all of the ghosts and whatnot but it actually has lots of adult jokes and is actually aimed more at older viewers.

There's something about nearly all movies made around this time which makes them so special- many of them are so simple yet so effective. Many of the outstanding movies nowadays are those which contain complex storylines but are very good (like The Dark Knight) but it's great to see how great these older movies can be by having such a basic premise.

I also need to note that the pacing in this movie is great- everything progresses quickly and never comes to a halt.

I couldn't really find many issues with the movie but I do have a few. They aren't major but they are minor things I would like to point out.

Winston, even though I like his character, feels like he's just 'there' and doesn't really add anything. This is probably because he is introduced later on so he kind of feels slapped in and isn't really necessary.

Even though I like the final act (the fight against the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man), it feels a bit short and only lasts a couple of minutes. I'd like to have seen it cause more chaos.

Also, it might just be me but it kind of ends rather abruptly. Usually in a movie, the final act goes down and then there's a final scene clearing everything up. In this it's like the credits are playing over that final scene. Imagine at the end of Star Wars (spoilers for the first Star Wars even thought you probably already know the ending), imagine the credits start rolling as soon as the Death Star has been destroyed and they are playing over the award ceremony scene. I mean, it's not like anything needs clearing up at the end of this movie but it's a bit different to other movies.

Overall, this is a great movie with great characters, great dialogue and humour and also very good pacing. I would highly recommend this.