Written by By Michael Isaacson, CNN
“Ghostbusters: Afterlife” is in cinemas now. It’s an unlikely face-off, bringing together Paul Feig, who directed the female-starring “Ghostbusters” movie from 2016, and Ivan Reitman, who made the original 1984 film with Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis.
Sure, there’s a new, all-female cast of Ghostbusters, featuring Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon. But the new film, written by Feig and Katie Dippold, and filmed in the “Afterlife” scene — which used to be a found footage “holy grail” for fans — is really a return to the original.
The villain of the film, played by Bill Murray, is back too.
More so than its predecessor, this time there’s a new team: new/old. Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy play the original Ghostbusters, while Chris Hemsworth takes over the Ecto-1 from Ernie Hudson and provides the love interest for McCarthy’s character. Andy Garcia rounds out the cast as Harold Ramis’ boss.
It’s a familiar story, a group of brilliant ghost hunters called upon to clear up a haunted Manhattan. The setting is much like the original (although the New York, essentially Manhattan, has been transformed into a far less spacious, snow-capped and jet-blacked version of its former self).
Cineworld introduced a retro Scary Movie-style TV trailer for the new movie, complete with classic fake footage and hilarious banter.
“Yes it looks very ancient and familiar,” said James Salmon, deputy head of marketing at Cineworld , in a statement. “But we at Cineworld are still trying to push things a little further.”
“The team at Cineworld has always been enamored with the first ‘Ghostbusters’ film,” Salmon said. “It was a film that appealed to a brand new generation of fans and is a definite favorite among Cineworld staff for showing how great quality films can be made with a genuine, no-holds-barred approach. We’re really proud of our part in bringing Paul Feig and Katie Dippold’s stellar script to our audiences, and so excited to hear what they’ve accomplished with this most recent version of our original franchise.”
In fact, Salmon wasn’t the only one in celebration mode.
‘We’re in the family’
Washington-based film aficionado Zach Broten is another of the latest movie buffs to fall head over heels for “Ghostbusters.”
“This is the one generation of kids that love it, they love it and love it,” Broten said in a phone interview. “There have been two reboots and the characters are still in the film and the stuff that happens to them — the ghosts are still in the film and the movie has more ghosts. There’s nothing else like it and we’re in the family now.”