The Ultimate in Paranormal Comedy

Rating: 10/10 (7 December 2014)

What a movie! What an original, goofy, side-splitting movie! Ghostbusters is one of those projects were everything just came together. Somebody had an idea, somebody else believed in it, all the right people got involved, and everything just flowed, producing an instant classic and a landmark of popular culture. From one idea that Dan Akroyd worked on in his spare time came on of mid eighties' best pictures, and perhaps the best horror-comedy since the days of Abbot and Costello.
That idea of course, is 'What if there really were ghosts? And what if there were people who made a living catching them?' And the screenplay has a lot of fun with that idea, treating it like real life, down to advertising blitz and regulatory headaches. Yet at the same time it embraces the more fantastic aspects of the story, playing up hauntings, possessions, and the apocalypse to great comedic effect. There's a real blending of the supernatural and the mundane that you don't see a lot, certainly not with such hilarious results.
Equally important is the superb casting. Every actor and actress is perfect for his/her role, which is not surprising considering that some of the roles were written for them. Akroyd, as the co-writer, created for himself a role that plays wonderfully to his natural talents. In real life, he's a smart, earnest, kind off nerdy guy, so naturally it follows that he should be an overly-excitable, somewhat gullible nerd who pours himself into his work. Harold Ramis is brilliant as Egon, the straight faced dry intellectual, and Ernie Hudson brings a real down to earth likability to Winston. Sigourney Weaver shows that she definitely has what it takes to play comedies; I have no idea how she managed to keep from cracking up during the 'possessed' scenes.
But it's Bill Murray who really steals the show. One if Murray's greatest strengths as an actor is his shiftiness, his blatant insincerity, and as a result he's at his best when playing the schemer, the con man. And Peter Venkman is just such a man. He's a fraud, a charlatan who makes his living studying things he doesn't even believe in- and a shameless womanizer to boot. His chemistry with Weaver is priceless, and throughout he maintains the comedic balancing act that he does so well; never flat or deadpan, but never quite over the top. It's really his character driving this whole enterprise, even if he has no idea what he's doing.
There are some good action sequences here, and a handful of truly scary parts, like the now-famous librarian. I especially love the ending, with what is surely the funniest giant monster ever created- nice going, Ray. The special effects are generally pretty good for 1985, and even when they aren't it only adds to the movie's goofy feel.
Ghostbusters is also one the most quotable pictures since Monty Python and the Holy Grail. There are plenty of instantly recognizable one-liners, like "He slimed me" and "Back off man, I'm a scientist," and some wonderfully tongue in cheek speeches, like the famous 'Twinkie speech,' or the one early on that begins with "Call it fate, call it luck, call it karma." It's hard to pick just one, but I would have to say that my favorite line is ""Man, the superintendent is gonna be pi**ed!" And the dialog works even when being 100% serious. The conversation between Ray and Winston about the book of Revelation is a minor masterpiece in its own right.
What else is there to say about this movie? It's got a wonderful score by Elmer Bernstein, and a killer theme song by Ray Parker Junior that actually went to number one on the singles charts. There are gorgeous views of New York City and a double serving of Big Apple attitude. Any way you look at it, this is a great production with everything done right from beginning to end. If you haven't seen it yet, do so, and soon.