Loud and brash supernatural comedy, greatly bolstered by in-form comic performances.

Rating: 6/10 (13 September 2007)

A considerable box office hit in 1984, Ghostbusters is a simple-minded and very American supernatural comedy that provides quite a lot of entertainment if you don't expect anything too profound of it. This is a film that exists as enjoyment for its own sake  there is no wider intention beyond mixing laughter and spectacle in an appealing way. The film could have been instantly forgettable in less assured hands, but director Ivan Reitman deserves credit for pushing the right buttons. He is helped out immeasurably by the comic talents of Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, Rick Moranis and Harold Ramis  all four are in uncommonly good form throughout this film, and it's their funny interaction and clever sense of timing that makes numerous scenes stick long in the memory.
Three parapsychologists are thrown off campus after bringing themselves into disrepute. Driven by unemployment to take drastic measures, they set up a ghost hunting business. The mismatched trio comprises of enthusiastic Ray Stantz (Dan Akroyd), technical boffin Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis), and incompetent faker Pete Venkman (Bill Murray) who has virtually no scientific understanding but coasts by pretending that he has. Under the name "Ghostbusters", they prove a surprising success as they ride around New York responding to ghost sightings and capturing the spectral critters. One lady, Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver), phones them from a high-rise apartment block after undergoing a weird supernatural experience in her kitchen. When the Ghostbusters arrive, everything in her apartment is back to normal, but Venkman  ever the womaniser  takes a shine to their latest client. Only later does it become clear that Dana's apartment is built over an ancient gateway and is about to become the scene of an invasion of demonic forces. The Ghostbusters find the world turning to them to save the future of mankind when all the malevolent spirits converge.
Murray makes the best of his role, using deadpan delivery to ensure his lovable liar is the film's most endearing character. Moranis comes a close second as Dana's hopelessly dim neighbour, a small insignificant mouse of a man who ends up working for the forces of evil after being possessed. The film relies heavily on special effects and, generally-speaking, they are cleverly done (especially for the time). In fact, the film was nominated for an Oscar for its Visual Effects. The ghosts blend fairly seamlessly into the live action, and characters like the destructive Slimer and the gigantic Marshmallow Man are brought inventively to life. The story (by Akroyd and Ramis) tends towards broad slapstick, but it's an epic sort of slapstick that takes the genre to staggering, destructive and spectacular levels. Murray does manage to sneak in a few sly, underplayed gags that are wittier than the demands of the film overall. In summary:- Ghostbusters is brash, broad, and overblown. but a lot of fun!