Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
Released in theaters on March 22, 2024
Not currently on a streaming service.
Runtime: 1 Hour 55 Minutes
Rated PG-13
The Spengler family returns, with the Ecto-1, to New York to join the original Ghostbusters to continue the family business. When Ray Stantz comes into possession of an ancient artifact an evil entity with the power to scare people to death is unleashed on the Big Apple. The new team, the old team, and new friends must team up to stop this treat before New York becomes an eternal popsicle.
Themes: “Busting makes me feel good!”
Paranormal studies, parapsychology, gods (little g), ghosts, friendship, teamwork, courage, friendship, possession, New York City, clients, business, the Environmental Protection Agency, scam artists, mass hysteria, ancient artifacts, retirement, coming of age, working, research, UFOs, astral projections, mental telepathy, ESP, clairvoyance, spirit photography, telekinetic movement, full trance mediums, the Loch Ness monster, and the theory of Atlantis, and ancient societies.
Language:
Religious Exclamations - 1 Sucks, Testicle, and Crap - All said once
A*s - 5 B*tch - 1 D*mn - 1 D*ck - 1 Hell - 6 Sh*t - 1
Stuff to be aware of:
Scariness - There are a few frozen dead people, one’s hand is broken off. There are several scary ghosts including one with sharp teeth and glowing eyes. All the ghosts can be seen in the trailers. A ghost pushes broken off horns back into it’s head and they grow in creepy ways. Several people get frozen and shattered. One character get possessed and has glowing eyes and speaks in a creepy way.
Sexual Stuff - Two female characters become friends, but some of their body language and expressions hint that they might like each other romantically. I would guess the writer’s intentions was that they were interested in each other. The characters do not touch, hug, or kiss. Several sexual statements are made throughout the film as jokes. The phrase, “I think they are mating” is used. There are jokes made about a room being a sex dungeon and about the older lady that owned it having sex in it. Several jokes are made about this room. Two characters mention that they “got some action” with each other, but it isn’t stated if they are married or not. Hookers are briefly mentioned when describing a club of men. One character calls the villain, “tall, dark and horney.” (if you have questions about any of this shoot me a message on the Facebook page.)
Other - One character drinks alcohol out of a hidden bottle. *Some of what follows in this section could be considered spoiler territory.* One ghost is a girl that explains that she was burned alive when she died. She does give some details about this. One character uses a machine to separate her spirit from her body. She mentions that it is nonlethal, but he doing this feels a bit forced and unwarranted.
Overall:
I am a huge Ghostbusters fan, so I could not wait for this one! Then when I read it would feel like an episode of The Real Ghostbuster I was stoked. I may have even bought a ghost trap popcorn bucket and minipuft sipper before I saw it. Yeah, I’m all in.
Okay, let me get a few things off my jumpsuit wearing chest and then I’ll get to the good stuff. I feel like this movie needed about thirty more minutes. Some of the choices characters make and some of the reactions characters have at times don’t feel like they make fully make sense. Kind of like maybe we needed a little more build up or explanation (and relationship building). Also, there is humor, but not the random, off the wall ad libbing kind (like in the originals). I know, a lot of that was Murray, Ramis, and Aykroyd goofing around in the originals, but I miss it. Bill Murray described the movie as a, “mess that people will enjoy.” I think he nailed it. The movie tries to balance a lot of plot points and themes. At times the movie nails it and at others it doesn’t as much. It is kind of messy, but…
Did I like it? Is the atomic weight of cobalt 58.9? I really enjoyed it! Is it as good as the original? No way, I didn’t expect it to be. This one feels kind of like a The Real Ghostbusters episode. In my opinion I liked Afterlife better. That said, some awesome things about this one is the new tech, the Paranormal Research Center, seeing more of the Firehouse then we ever have, and the ghosts are great! Pukey and the Possessor are my two favorite new ones. There is some great world building done, so I figure we will get some sequels in the future.
Murray surprised me in this. After all the years of being negative about a sequel he brought Venkman back to life perfectly and seemed to be legitimately having fun. Of the originals Aykroyd was the best in this. I think Ray Stantz is really just who Akyroyd is at heart, so no acting is required. His sense of wonder and excitement from the original movies is back and superb. There are a ton of characters in this film and several new ones, which unfortunately left me wanting more Winston and Janine. Since the two of them are kind of the ones keeping the business going from a financial and organizational stand point I wanted to see more of them. Phoebe’s story in the movie, in my opinion did not warrant some decisions she makes.
Busting still makes me feel good! I will say this one had more intense moments and scary ghosts than past films. Being in the theater might make it a bit scarier than it is for younger viewers.