The Film
When Paul Feig first announced he was going to remake the comedy Ghostbusters, I was torn. On the one hand, I do love his work, most notably Freaks and Geeks. On the other hand, I loathe remakes.
Also, I absolutely adore Bill Murray and don't think anyone should ever try to reboot anything he's ever been in -- even Garfield. (That's for other reasons, though.) I couldn't see how anyone could improve upon, reimagine, or even think of touching that 1984 classic. It's one of those movies I rarely pass by, even when it's being aired on a network that slices and dices it up to squeeze in countless commercials.
Well, I wasn't alone. The new Ghostbusters quickly became one of the most hated trailers on the Internet. Despite our grumblings though, it came out -- and you know what? It's not that bad.
It's actually kind of good. Is it like the original? In some respect, yes. It follows sort of the same formula, with three scientists (Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, and Kate McKinnon) and one non-techie recruit (Leslie Jones) ditching their day jobs (in some cases, not by choice) to fight ghosts in New York City. The 2016 Ghostbusters also have a secretary named Kevin (Chris Hemsworth), who is insanely dumb, insanely nice to look at, and plays a much bigger role than Annie Potts ever did.
Of course, there are things that could have been done better. Some of the jokes fall flat, the film takes a bit too long to get to the actual ghost-busting, and the climax left a bit too much of a cheesy taste in my mouth. And really, was Rowan (Neil Casey) supposed to be scary? The idea of having a mortal bring forth the wrath was a good one, but there wasn't enough backstory there. Also, he seemed to have a lot more fun in the body of Chris Hemsworth, as would most people.
Still, Ghostbusters does a lot of things really well. The four leads have excellent chemistry, all while keeping the focus on friendship and kicking ass. No romantic subplots are needed here. It was also refreshing that no one ever came out and said, "Girls? You can't possibly save our city!" And that's a good thing too, because all four do a damn fine job busting ghosts. They also do fart and poop jokes pretty well too, so stereotypes be damned!
The film even has more ghosts, as well as more ghost-busting tools and a crazy amount of special effects. There are also a ton of fun cameos. Murray has the biggest of the bunch, but Potts, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Sigourney Weaver all appear as well. Heck, even the late Harold Ramis gets a nod.
Still, Ghostbusters 2016 just can't top the original -- and that's okay. It's still a lot of fun. It won't ruin your childhood or make you think that women are trying to take over the world. And really, would the latter be such a bad thing?
Ready to bust through another review of this movie? Check out Matthew Passantino's theatrical review of Ghostbusters.
The Picture
I received the 4K Ultra HD version of Ghostbusters, even though I didn't review the 4K version of the film. The pack includes a 4K disc, a Blu-ray 3D disc, and a 2D Blu-ray. Sony didn't release a stand-alone 3D version of this movie. That means if you want to enjoy those special effects, you'll have to opt for the 4K Ultra HD release.
Most people probably won't want to pop for an upgrade they can't use. That's sort of a shame, because this movie does have some awesome 3D effects. It has great depth throughout and the special effects really pop. It's a lot of fun to see ghosts jump out and slime shooting off the screen. However, the 3D does make the image very dark and not as sharp looking when compared to the standard Blu-ray.
So despite those cool pop-outs, I found the standard Blu-ray to be a little more enjoyable. It's bursting with colors and detail on the characters, the New York backdrop, and even the ghosts. It also has sort of a 3D quality to it. Nothing pops out of the screen, but it is a wonderful looking edition -- and you don't even need glasses.
The Sound
Boo -- and not in a scary way. Sony decided to make the Dolby Atmos track a 4K exclusive. Even worse, the Blu-ray 3D and standard Blu-ray discs have a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track. That's not a typo; it's 5.1. Why Sony couldn't at least give both discs a 7.1 mix is confusing and a little disappointing.
Still, this is an excellent track, with booming bass and tons of detailed special effects zapping, popping, and exploding all around the soundfield. It's a fun, active track with plenty of creaks, screeches, and moans as well. Even the music sounds great here. So while Sony's decision to drop the Atmos in favor of 5.1 is extremely disappointing (enough that I knocked this score down half a point), what you're left with shouldn't be; Ghostbusters sounds pretty killer.
The Extras
First and foremost, it should be noted that this is the Ghostbusters: Extended Edition. The set does include the theatrical cut of the movie, as well as an extended edition that's an extra 18 minutes. However, both versions are not available on all three discs in the set. The 3D disc has the theatrical version, the 4K disc has the extended one, and the standard Blu-ray is the only one to feature both.
Also, despite having three discs, the bulk of the extras are included on the standard Blu-ray disc. According to Sony, the 4K disc includes a few extras, but we couldn't check those out. However, there are zero special features on the 3D Blu-ray.
Otherwise, this Extended Edition does come oozing with extras, including two Gag Reels, plenty of deleted and extended scenes, a photo gallery, and two full-length commentary tracks on both versions of the film. It's unfortunate that none of the cast members sit down for either of those. Instead, Paul Feig (director/writer) and Katie Dippold (writer) do one, with Feig, Brent White (editor), Jessie Henderson (executive producer), Jefferson Sage (production designer), Pete Travers (visual effects supervisor), and Mark Hawker (special effects supervisor) on the other.
There are also featurettes on the main characters (including a separate one for Chris Hemsworth's Kevin) and the ghosts, as well as a 5-minute short on making and flinging slime. Super-fans will also want to check out the "Visual Effects" short, which does compare this film to the original, but is mostly about what's used here.
And finally, know that this film comes with an UltraViolet Digital Copy, which also has its own set of extras. According to the insert with the digital copy code, it has "over an hour of additional extended and alternate scenes."
Final Thoughts
Was a Ghostbusters reboot necessary? Of course not, but it's still a lot of fun. Despite the lack of consistency across all three discs, the Ghostbusters: Extended Edition is one worth picking up. The cast has great chemistry, there are some funny jokes, and the action is pretty endless. I can't imagine that I will watch this one as many times as the original, but I'd probably watch it more times on Blu-ray. The updated special effects look awesome, the audio is engaging, and it has a really entertaining collection of extras.
Product Details
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