WATCH: "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire"
The sequel to 2021's "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" gets the whole gang back together, but struggles to maintain energy while giving everyone on screen something meaningful to do.
A few thoughts on “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire,” which hits theaters on March 22:
As usual, a few notes that didn’t make it into the video:
So. Much. Exposition in this script. In all fairness, though, almost all of the “Ghostbusters” films are a bit encumbered by lots of exposition to explain where the ghosts come from, why they do what they do and why they’re doing it right now. Also, Dan Aykroyd is really, really good at delivering exposition in these films. He’s just fun to listen to rattling off the pseudo-history and technobabble.
Getting everybody back to New York City for this installment of the series is a great move. Yes, it provides more opportunities for classic Ghostbusters Easter eggs and nostalgia, but it also provides opportunities to introduce characters and personalities that you arguably could only find in NYC.
I mentioned how much I enjoyed Kumail Nanjiani’s part in this film, but also Patton Oswalt is a hoot in his limited amount of screen time here. He give Aykroyd a run for his money in terms of delivering exposition, but with a bit more subversive glee.
Villain = weak. Just another symptom of the underwriting all over the overstuffed proceedings.
OK, OK, I’ll stop being a buzzkill now. Upside? Lots of cool new ghostbusting toys and gadgets this time out!
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
Starring Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, Ernie Hudson, and Annie Potts. Directed by Gil Kenan.
Running time: 115 minutes