Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) Movie Review, Cast, Plot

Ghostbusters: Afterlife reminds you a bit of Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens. In both cases, the goal was to bring back the popular franchise after the previous parts were at least controversial. In the case of Ghostbusters, it was an exclusively female 2016 edition that was not liked, for a variety of reasons. In order to forget such a bad title, it is necessary to travel to the past and connect directly with the originals. In case of doubt, what already worked is then unpacked again, hoping the audience’s need for nostalgia will ensure the box office is refilled.

Where Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a more coherent title in that regard. Where stellar warriors have managed to catch up just by pretending that time has stood still for thirty years, ghost hunters at every turn make it known how much has happened since then. As early as 1989, Ghostbusters II toyed with the fact that the events of Ghostbusters were forgotten only a few years later. Honored heroes in the media have become sad scoundrels appearing on children’s birthdays. In the third part, that is not enough for that either. The four men who once saved New York City are history. A story no one remembers except maybe a few nerds. Nobody cares anymore.

When her father passed away, Callie (Carrie Coon – The Leftovers TV series, The Nest, etc.) along with her teenage son Trevor (Finn Wolfhard – The Addams Family, The Turning, etc.) and daughter Phoebe (Mckenna Grace – Annabelle Comes Home , Spirit) Untamed, etc.) went to the small town of Summerville to take care of her little heritage. Phoebe went to summer school where she befriended a boy named Podcast (Logan Kim) and teacher Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd – Ant-man and the Wasp, Knocked Up, etc.). Meanwhile, Trevor was immediately attracted to a local girl named Lucky (Celeste O’Connor – Freaky, etc.).

Exploring her grandfather’s house, Phoebe discovered that he was actually part of the Ghostbusters and as she further researched, she realized there was a reason why he had moved to Summerville. As extreme danger approaches, Phoebe and the others must try to save the world.

So how would the story end? Find it all in this exciting adventure movie.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife Movie Review, Plot

Ghostbusters (especially the first one) was one of our favorite movies because it managed to combine a supernatural event with some comedy. I remembered that there was a cartoon series after the movie that I often watched. The second film was also entertaining, though not as memorable as its predecessor. So when I watched this film, I immediately felt a strong nostalgic feeling with the original film, especially since they were directly connected to it.

Ghostbusters Starter: The film’s legacy was pretty good with some intense scenes, but as soon as the story focused on Callie and her family, the pace slowed down a bit. Surprisingly for me, however, despite the slower pace, it somehow didn’t bore me. I think it’s because the main characters Phoebe, Trevor and Podcast were very interesting and we felt attached to them. I think director Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air, etc.) is pretty amazing in directing the cast. Btw, he was also the writer for this film as he continued the legacy of his father Ivan Reitman (director of original films and also known for directing Meatballs, Twins, Kindergarten Cop, etc.).

The adventures that Phoebe, Trevor and Podcast had were really fun to watch. The audience and I really liked Logan Kim portraying the Podcast while providing light moments. Paul Rudd’s aura that the actor is known for his comic role also further enhanced his sense of light. However, a lot of research and character development has had its downside for me, as it has reduced the ghost-catching activities that should be a major part of the Ghostbusters: Afterlife to me and the audience. And despite some tense scenes that started in the middle to end, it would probably be even better to have more of those ghost-shooting scenes. Fortunately, the film lasted a little over 2 hours, so he had enough time to cover everything and there was no rush to finish.

What I liked the most was definitely during the last third. The ultimate battle with the greatest enemy was amazing, especially when all hope seemed lost. Although there was one short part that the audience didn’t like, but that’s why towards the end there was one very emotional and beautiful moment that we loved very much, I think they managed to forgive that scene. This movie has one credit scene in the middle and one post-end credit scene that I think you better not miss. Oh, I was actually a little surprised that the film was categorized for all ages.

But after seeing it, I could understand because the main stars are actually kids and the ghosts weren’t that scary (some of them even looked cute). But in my opinion, there were still a few moments that could probably scare the kids, even though the kid who watched the movie along with his parents and sits a few places next to us, as if he didn’t care.

All in all, I enjoyed this Ghostbusters: Afterlife movie. It certainly brought a lot of nostalgic feelings with the appearance of stars from the original movies, those classic proton packages and traps, plus a few famous ghosts (although we expected to see more of them). There was even a theme from the original 1984 film sung by Ray Parker Jr. to lift our spirits. Watching a movie theater with good sound system also helped me in the pleasure. So, if you like the original Ghostbusters movies, then you would probably like Ghostbusters: Afterlife because it can be considered a direct sequel and I think it’s a nice tribute to Harold Ramis who passed away in 2014. IMDB Movie Rating: 7.7 / 10

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE — Official Trailer 2 (HD)