Ghostbusters (2016)
Directed by Paul Feig
Following a ghost invasion of Manhattan, paranormal enthusiasts Erin Gilbert and Abby Yates, nuclear engineer Jillian Holtzmann, and subway worker Patty Tolan band together to stop the otherworldly threat.
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4 films that influenced Ghostbusters
What critics say influenced Ghostbusters
Too much of the new Ghostbusters is concerned with paying homage to the first movie, from the use of Ray Parker Jr.’s theme song to the incorporation of the Ghostbusters logo into the plot (the logo comes to life as an evil spirit).
“Ghostbusters” gets off to a good start, seemingly going its own way and not copying the 1984 movie.
You can draw plenty of parallels between this new Ghostbusters and the 1984 original.
After months of negative online buzz, director Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters remake emerges as a consistently funny pleasure, never quite as sharp or inspired as the 1984 original, but radiating such good cheer that comparisons between the two films don’t much matter.
No “Ghostbusters” is an island, and stacked against the charming 1984 original, the 2016 effort becomes a pale, unnecessary echo.
“Ghostbusters” is back, with its impossibly jaunty theme song bouncing away in my head again like it’s 1984.
Yet even when falling into an unchallenging mold, akin to The Force Awakens in following a structure that recalls its original predecessor, it is the new elements that help Ghostbusters work as well as it does, particularly due to a pair of new cast members.
In many ways, the best film to compare with “Ghostbusters” is “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the most baggage-laden film of 2015.
However, none of the Ghostbusters ’ revamping is done in spite of the original; it’s a film just as unabashed as likes of The Force Awakens in its ties to the powerful undercurrents of nostalgia, though its lack of direct narrative continuation certainly lends its references more of a knowing wink.
Like those who complained that The Force Awakens aped the structure of A New Hope, it’s likely that many will make the same complaint of Feig’s take on this franchise.
As we saw with The Force Awakens , that’s the way to extend a franchise because it excites the fan base rather than alienating them.
Like Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens before it, Ghostbusters is a soft remake that relies on a familiar formula to ensure the safest product possible.
The newest iteration would be, indignant fans of the original scoffed , a straight reboot, not a sequel, and thus might pose a threat to the Ghostbusters canon; for another thing, they scoffed some more, the eponymous specter-slayers would this time around be ladies, which probably meant that the beloved franchise would be converted, come July of 2016, into Sex and the City with slime.
Remember when Sony rebooted Sam Raimi’s take on Spider-Man (2002) with The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)?