Yes, I know, Ghostbusters Afterlife came out last month. Between my favorite holiday, a concert and a bunch of other items on my plate, we hadn’t had a chance to slip out to the movie theater. My wife and I were able to attend a Sunday matinee showing, which was still crowded considering how many weeks the movie had been available. Since the movie has been out for a while, I can be a little bit more spoilerish in my movie review.
Bottom line up front. I loved this movie and I can’t wait to buy the blu-ray to see all of the extras. Nothing in the plot really stood out to me or jarred me out of the story. There is a lot of character development at the start of the movie. I did have a moment where I mentally said “Hey movie, we’ve got our characters now it’s time to do something” and (like it heard me) it started doing something. So yea a little patience at the start will be rewarded.
It’s been a while since I’ve seen the other Ghostbuster movies, but I felt confident enough that I could spot any major easter eggs. And sure enough, I saw them. When you are a fan of a series, you get to know the characters and the universe they inhabit. I mentioned one out loud to my wife (the book stacking). However if you have not seen any of the earlier movies, you won’t be lost when you see this latest addition. The plot is pretty straight forward and fits in well with the franchise.
You get to see (almost) all of the familiar face from the earlier movies. Some from various clips, some from deleted scenes that were re-purposed (and very well done). I understand that Rick Moranis is mostly retired from acting (for good reason) but I was really hoping that he would make a cameo appearance. Perhaps someday we will actually get Spaceballs II: The Search for More Money and he can revive his role as Dark Helmet. (fingers crossed) Paul Rudd didn’t make me think of his Antman movies and his reaction to the mini-marshmellow men was perfect.
I was wondering how the ending was going to come about and I was not disappointed. Without giving it away, let me just say that, as a dad, I was actually in tears when everything was wrapped up. There is an early-credits scene (very wonderful) and a post-credits scene so stay until the end. This post-credit scene may be hinting at a future installment in this franchise. With how well this movie is doing in the box office, I hope that can come about.
Another advantage to seeing the movie a few weeks later is that the various easter egg videos have been released. I did a search for them after I got home and found quite a few that confirmed my suspicions. What shocked me is that the “tabloidy” video makers were still trying to run click-bait videos with a movie as good as this one. Just a reminder from me, avoid these videos at all costs. They are trying to use an emotional response to gain clicks. I was able to stick with some main-stream content creators who were able to highlight a the easter eggs I had found or had missed.
With how many upcoming movies that I want to see being released soon (Matrix and Kingsman), I don’t think I’ll get a chance to see Ghostbusters Afterlife again in the theater. So I am glad that I had the chance to do so when we did. This is a movie that I’m glad was delayed from the “year that shall not be named”. It was much better seeing it in the theaters.