A Reel Recap: GHOSTBUSTERS - 1984 to Present

This week, the fifth (!) film in the ever-popular, nearly 40-year-old GHOSTBUSTERS franchise arrives in theatres. Here now to get your slime going, is a recap of the franchise on the big screen, because Reel Speak ain’t afraid of no ghost. 

 

 

 

GHOSTBUSTERS (1984)

The Ivan Reitman-directed blend of sci-fi, comedy, and horror that became a pop culture sensation that lasts to this day. Three misfit and outcast scientists, Venkman (Bill Murray), Ray (Dan Aykroyd), and Egon (the late great Harold Ramis), start a ghost-catching business in New York City. Based on a script by Aykroyd and Ramis, GHOSTBUSTERS also had a strong supporting cast of Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and Ernie Hudson. The film would create a new genre by mixing several genres of film, and as a box office smash, would be credited as an early blockbuster. It would be nominated for two Oscars; Best Original Song for Ghostbusters by Ray Parker, Jr., and Best Visual Effects. Beyond that, TV shows were launched, merchandise still flies off the shelves with the iconic logo, and fans to this day visit filming locations in New York. 

 

 

 

GHOSTBUSTERS II (1989)

Unlike franchises of today which tend to crank out sequels within a couple of years, it took five years to bring the guys back together for another round of busting spiritual heads. Most of the original cast would return, as would director Ivan Reitman. Despite this, the film would open to negative reviews, and come up well short of its predecessor at the box office. It would be deemed a critical and commercial failure, and would stall the franchise for decades with Murray a long-time holdout. 

 

 

 

GHOSTBUSTERS (2016)

With a proper GHOSTBUSTERS III on ice, the decision was made to reboot the franchise with a new cast and new line of continuity. Ignoring the two previous films, this Paul Feig-directed attempt at a new franchise brought in a new cast (Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones), and was immediately met with ire from long-time fans. The film struggled at the box office and flopped, and was bogged down by mixed-to-bad reviews. Plans for a direct sequel were scrapped. 

 

 

 

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE (2021)

Jason Reitman (son of Ivan), teamed up with his father for a labor-of-love which finally brought the one-and-only Ghostbusters back to the big screen for the first time in over 30 years. With the death of Harold Ramis in 2014, the Reitman’s used his absence to deliver the most emotional GHOSTBUSTERS film to date. The film centered around the family of the departed Egon; his adult daughter (Carrie Coon), and her daughter (McKenna Grace), as they discover the legacy of the original Ghostbusters just as a spooky friend returns. The original cast was back to the delight of fans, along with newcomers Paul Rudd and Finn Wolfhard, and the franchise finally had a new life on the big screen. 

 

 

 

GHOSTBUSTERS: FROZEN EMPIRE (2024)

And that brings us to today. AFTERLIFE did well enough at the box office to greenlight a sequel, and the fifth overall film once again reunites the original cast, along with the cast of AFTERLIFE. Jason Reitman serves as a producer, leaving the helm to Oscar-nominated director Gil Kenan. FROZEN EMPIRE returns things to New York City, where Ghostbusters, new and old, fight to protect their home from a ghost or two that threatens a new ice age. 

 

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Bustin’ will make us feel good on March 22^nd, with previews on March 21^st.