'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' calls back to the original while adding a teenage twist
In a directorial father-son baton pass from Ivan Reitman to Jason Reitman ("Up in the Air"), "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" is undeniably nostalgic and fairly sweet, while who-ya-gonna-calling directly back to the 1984 original. And yet with its focus on teenage heirs to that legacy, the movie simultaneously feels as much like the Disney Channel version of "Ghostbusters" as a long-delayed sequel.
Happily, the kids are the very talented Mckenna Grace ("Gifted," "The Handmaid's Tale") and "Stranger Things'" Finn Wolfhard, the grandchildren of Egon Spengler (originally played by the late Harold Ramis). Egon has died, leaving a remote farmhouse to his estranged daughter (Carrie Coon), who for financial reasons finds the move timely.
Moving into the place, Phoebe (Grace) and Trevor (Wolfhard) discover a lot of strange stuff happening around town -- starting with all those unexplained earthquakes -- and some nifty artifacts among grandpa's possesses. Phoebe possesses scientific acumen far beyond her years, while her brother mostly just crushes on one of his new classmates (Celeste O'Connor).
Mom, meanwhile, strikes up a somewhat unexpected relationship with one of the kids' teachers (Paul Rudd, seemingly everywhere at once), adding to an adult component that produces some laughs but frankly rides in the passenger seat for much of the movie. (Coon is a gifted actress, but there's a bit of the "E.T." mom syndrome here, where she can't see all the weirdness happening her.)
Cleverly, the film (written by Jason Reitman, Dan Aykroyd and Gil Kenan) does set up a dense mythology connecting this flurry of spectral shenanigans back to the 1980s, while playfully incorporating visual touches that recall the "Ghostbusters" of the past. There are also funny unrelated gags, such as Rudd's character getting through summer school by simply running wildly inappropriate horror movies.
In some respects, "Afterlife" represents a rather conspicuous exercise in fan service, after the bizarre temper tantrum thrown by some in response to the female version of the concept that premiered five years ago. While that movie was flawed, the reaction seemed completely out of whack, elevating "Ghostbusters" to an overblown level of "You ruined my childhood!" exaltation.
The elder Reitman serves as a producer on the movie, which -- with Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson promoting the movie -- isn't the only link to its Reagan-era roots. Still, this is one of those films that doesn't so much cross the streams as dip into a deep well of goodwill, hoping to bridge the gap between those who actually saw the original in a theater and kids and grandkids who will hopefully identify with the youthful protagonists.
At its best "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" simply delivers a good time, combining the upgraded special effects with comedy and youthful angst, while taking a little too long to get to the good stuff.
Broken down into those components, the younger Reitman has dutifully answered the call to carry on his family legacy, without quite conjuring the kind of sparks that would have made "Afterlife" completely rise to the occasion.
"Ghostbusters: Afterlife" premieres Nov. 19 in US theaters. It's rated PG-13.
《捉鬼敢死队：来世》回归原作，同时增添了少女感
在从伊万·雷特曼 (Ivan Reitman) 到杰森·雷特曼 (Jason Reitman)（“空中飞人”）的导演父子接力棒传球中，《捉鬼敢死队：来世》无疑是怀旧和相当甜蜜的，而谁又会直接回到 1984 年的原作。然而，由于它专注于这一遗产的青少年继承人，这部电影同时感觉就像迪斯尼频道版本的“捉鬼敢死队”一样，是一部拖延已久的续集。
令人高兴的是，孩子们是非常有才华的麦肯纳·格蕾丝（《天才》、《使女的故事》）和埃贡·斯宾格勒（最初由已故的哈罗德·拉米斯饰演）的孙辈“陌生事物”芬恩·沃尔夫哈德。埃贡去世了，把一个偏远的农舍留给了他疏远的女儿（凯莉库恩），她因经济原因及时搬家。
走进这个地方，菲比（格蕾丝饰）和特雷弗（沃尔夫哈德饰）发现镇上发生了很多奇怪的事情——从所有那些无法解释的地震开始——以及爷爷拥有的一些漂亮的文物。菲比拥有远超年龄的科学敏锐度，而她的哥哥大多只是迷恋他的一位新同学（塞莱斯特·奥康纳）。
与此同时，妈妈与其中一位孩子的老师（保罗·路德，似乎无处不在）建立了一种有点出乎意料的关系，增加了成人元素，在电影的大部分时间里都会产生一些笑声，但坦率地坐在乘客座位上。 （Coon 是一位有天赋的女演员，但这里有一点“E.T.”妈妈综合症，她看不到她身上发生的所有怪事。）
巧妙地，这部电影（由 Jason Reitman、Dan Aykroyd 和 Gil Kenan 编写）确实建立了一个密集的神话，将这一系列的幽灵恶作剧追溯到 1980 年代，同时有趣地融入了让人回忆起过去“捉鬼敢死队”的视觉效果。还有一些有趣的不相关的噱头，例如 Rudd 的角色通过简单地运行非常不合适的恐怖电影来通过暑期学校。
在某些方面，“来世”代表了粉丝服务中的一项相当引人注目的活动，此前有人为回应五年前首播的女性版概念而发脾气。虽然那部电影有缺陷，但反应似乎完全不正常，将“捉鬼敢死队”提升到了“你毁了我的童年！”的夸张水平。提高。
老雷特曼担任这部电影的制片人，这部电影——艾克罗伊德、比尔默里和厄尼哈德森宣传这部电影——并不是与里根时代根源的唯一联系。尽管如此，这是一部没有越过溪流而是浸入深井善意的电影，希望弥合那些在剧院中实际看过原作的人和希望认同的孩子和孙子孙女之间的差距年轻的主角们。
最好的“捉鬼敢死队：来世”只是提供了一个美好的时光，将升级后的特效与喜剧和年轻的焦虑相结合，而要花点时间才能看到好东西。
分解成这些组成部分，年轻的雷特曼尽职尽责地响应了继承家族遗产的号召，并没有完全想象出那种会让“来世”完全适应这种情况的火花。
“捉鬼敢死队：来世”于 11 月 19 日在美国影院首映。它的评级为 PG-13。
