The Ghostbusters remake has finally hit theatres after about a year of online bitching, whining, moaning, fighting, and trolling. It became the most polarizing film of all time before it even hit theatres! There was so much hate for the remake from the get go and the poor quality trailers only fueled the hatred of the haters. The supporters of the remake, mainly feminists and SJWs didn’t do much to help matters by playing the “if you're against the remake, then you’re sexist” card. Personally, I believe that both sides had their share of general douchebaggery. However, I won’t discuss the remake any further in this post, because my focus is on the original, its sequel, and the third film that never materialized.
Ghostbusters (1984)
It’s pretty much been one of my favorite films ever since I was a wee lad, Hell, I even tried to make a proton pack out of Legos during those years! In my opinion, the film’s only gotten better with age largely due to the memorable characters, the comedic chemistry of the cast, the unique, paranormal premise, and the fact that the film is just so damn fun. Venkman is a lovable wise ass, Egon is a lovable nerd, Ray is a lovable, overly enthusiastic geek, and Winston is a lovable average joe. The supporting cast is great too, especially Sigourney Weaver as Dana, Rick Moranis as Louis, and Annie Potts as Janine. The effects still look solid and convincing over 30 years later too. Certain moments actually frightened me as a wee lad, but it was all part of the fun. This is one of those films that made me fall in love with film in the first place, so it’ll always have a special place in my heart. Also, I didn’t know till I was older what Ray was really busting in that dream sequence.
Ghostbusters II (1989)
The hate is strong with this sequel for some understandable reasons, but it’s still far from being a bad film if you ask me. Is it basically a retread of the original plot wise? Yes, but is it boring? Hell no, it’s just as entertaining as the original. The comic chemistry between the actors is still there even though Murray doesn’t seem too thrilled to be in it during certain scenes. Is the cynicism and skepticism of the people of NYC confusing? Yeah, they’re really shitty to the Ghostbusters early on, but it adds to the film and the negativity that’s feeding the slime under the city! The best moments in my opinion are the ones with Louis. I’ve been a huge fan of Rick Moranis ever since I saw the original Ghostbusters and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, and it was great to see him return. He’s hilarious, especially during the courtroom scenes. He proves himself to be an inept lawyer, but his heart is in the right place the whole time, which adds to the humor. Also, he suits up at the end! Speaking of the ending, I quite enjoyed it. Sure it’s a rehash of the ending from the original, but seeing the crew come to the rescue and walking around NYC in the Statue of Liberty is a pure geekgasm moment, dammit! Even though it’s not an entirely creative sequel, it’s not deserving of its negative reputation either if you ask me.
Why No Ghostbusters III?
Why did Ghostbusters III never materialize? Well, technically it kind of did, in video game form in 2009. I never played the game myself, but I’ve been meaning to for seven damn years! And why did it never materialize on film? Perhaps it was never meant to be. Murray was never interested in doing another one (unless they killed him off early on) and it felt like us fans were merely getting trolled with all the rumors and “promised” shooting dates. One rumored idea for a sequel that they should’ve gone with was the older Ghostbusters passing the torch to a new, younger generation of Ghostbusters. It didn’t come to be, and the death of Harold Ramis in 2014 made the possibility of a third film even more unlikely and unnecessary. Doing a sequel without Ramis and possibly Murray just wouldn’t have worked. There’s a lot more to the production hell that was Ghostbusters III, and maybe that would make for a cool documentary someday?
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