Ghostbusters-Frighteningly Innovative
In a decade marred by extreme conformity, Ghostbusters stands out as one of the more innovative films of the 1980s. A group of paranormal specialists setting up shop, with crazy gadgets designed to hunt down and capture ghost-for profit, is a simple but brilliant concept. The wildly original screenplay by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis has probably not been given enough credit for being both hilarious and entertaining. Ghostbusters is one of those incredibly rare films that manages to be entertaining to both adults and children.
Bill Murray, Aykroyd, Ramis and Sigourney Weaver are all fantastic and turn in performances that help make Ghostbusters not only a fun but unique and classic film. Like few films being produced by Hollywood in recent years, Ghostbusters is just plain fun and so much of that fun stems from the fact that the world of Ghostbusters is so new and so innovative. The film strikes a masterful balance between being hilarious and maintaining a slightly frightful edge.
By 1984 standards the visual, special effects and make-up effects are all outstanding and really add greatly to the fun of the film. It would be easy to get lost in the originality of the script and the strong acting performances of the cast and not note that Ghostbusters also scores high marks for costuming, set design, sound design and cinematography.
Ghostbusters pulled in somewhere around $300 million dollars because it was unlike any other film people had seen. The films success was due largely to the fact that it was wildly funny and appealed to almost all age groups. The wide appeal enjoyed by Ghostbusters is becoming something of an increasingly rare phenomenon.
Perhaps someday Hollywood can allow this kind of creativity to flow once more. If for some scary reason you have not seen Ghostbusters get your hands on it come Halloween time and set back and enjoy a modern classic.
Story A+ (Harold Ramis may be remembered more for Ghostbusters than any other single work he has been involved in to date.)
Acting A
Visuals A
Originality/Innovation A+
Enjoyability Grade A
Home Theater/HD Factor A (As soon as Ghostbusters is available on next-gen DVD buy it.)
Overall Grade A+ (This is a great film for children and adults, unless your a total right-winger, then you'll think its about the glorification of witchcraft and the like, but for those of you living in the late 19th, 20th or 21st century, this film is a total riot.)
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