{"id":36284,"date":"2021-11-19T15:49:13","date_gmt":"2021-11-19T20:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=36284"},"modified":"2021-11-19T15:51:41","modified_gmt":"2021-11-19T20:51:41","slug":"ghostbusters-afterlife-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2021\/11\/19\/ghostbusters-afterlife-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Fans have long awaited the proper third film in the \u201cGhostbusters\u201d series, and while it\u2019s become very apparent that the original cast is much too old to carry the series further, \u201cAfterlife\u201d is a great step in to a new world. Like most legacy sequels of beloved movie series, \u201cAfterlife\u201d pays great reverence to the original, while also carving out a path for a new direction and brand new cast of ghost fighting heroes. While \u201cAfterlife\u201d is very light in laughs and levity, it stills comes out in the end as a fantastic follow up that clicks right in to the first two films beautifully.<\/p>\n

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Thirty-seven years after the “Manhattan Crossrip of ’84<\/a>“, Callie, Egon’s estranged daughter, and her two children, Trevor and Phoebe, are evicted from their home and forced to move into Egon’s farm in Summerville, Oklahoma. While the brother and sister struggle to fit in, the science adept Phoebe begins digging in to her grandfather\u2019s belongings. Along with her new friend Podcast, they begin to uncover the source of the mysterious earthquakes plaguing their new town. Much to Phoebe\u2019s horror, they learn that an old nemesis of the Ghostbusters is dead set on being resurrected. Now armed with Egon\u2019s old technology, the new generation of Ghostbusters must do battle with the extraordinary monsters.<\/p>\n

With \u201cAfterlife,\u201d director Jason Reitman pays great respect and homage to the original \u201cGhostbusters\u201d offering up fun fan service, while cleverly aiming to win over a new fan base. When all is said and done \u201cAfterlife\u201d the movie belongs to McKenna Grace, a capable and exceptional actress who brings so much to the film. As Phoebe, she\u2019s engaging, likable, charming, and posits herself as a great role model for younger audiences to root for. She\u2019s pretty much the female Egon Spangler, a young girl obsessed with science and soaked in her own sense of curiosity about the world. Her journey of exploring the mystery of the town\u2019s supernatural occurrences transforms in to a unique coming of age story about family, legacy, and understanding.<\/p>\n

The latter is the most consistent theme as Reitman explores trying to understand the difficult position our parents can often be put in during times of great stress. Not to mention the sense of coming to terms with idea of sacrifice and how our role models can be and always will be imperfect. The respective supporting cast holds up the film excellently with Finn Wolfhard, Paul Rudd, and Carrie Coon offering heartfelt and lively performances. Newcomers Logan Kim and Celeste O\u2019Connor are also great in their roles as Podcast, and Lucky (if there is a sequel, I hope we can see more of them!). I wish we\u2019d seen so many more spooky ghouls and ghosts be unearthed allowing the characters to do some battle. I also would have loved a brand new villain to pose a threat to the new gen of Ghostbusters.<\/p>\n

Director Jason Reitman is put in to a rough position where he has to appease old fans and appeal to new; and for the most part, \u201cAfterlife\u201d is a success. Even with its narrative flaws \u201cAfterlife\u201d is a stunning, wonderful sequel, and the third chapter that fans (and Harold Ramis) deserved.<\/p>\n