It’s hard to follow in the outsized footsteps of Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and Harold Ramis, who saved New York from destruction in 1984’s “Ghostbusters.” But “Ghostbusters: Legacy” continues the legacy.
The “Ghostbusters” franchise is one of the few series that I am a true fan of. This is not only because of the fantastic-fun movies with Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and Harold Ramis, but especially because of the fantastic animated series “The Real Ghostbusters”, which you can still watch quite flawlessly today. But at the latest after “Extreme Ghostbusters”, the franchise lay fallow for a long time – at least in the cinema or on television.
Then in 2016 came the reboot attempt by “Bride Alarm” director Paul Feig with the film simply titled “Ghostbusters”. This was not the big hit, but also not that devil film, to which many fans had stylized it in advance. It wasn’t until 2021 that “Ghostbusters: Legacy” was to be a quasi-sequel to the original films, which should also appeal to audiences. Because even if this sequel isn’t perfect, it has its heart in the right place and is simply a successful fantasy fun that remembers the strengths of its predecessors.
If you want to see for yourself, you can watch “Ghostbusters: Legacy” now on Netflix. There, the successful revival of the Ghostbusters series is included in the streaming subscription starting today, August 27, 2023.
THE REBOOT HAS SUCCEEDED…
“Ghostbusters: Legacy” maintains the right level of fan service for a long time without losing its own identity. This happens simply because of the focus on new main characters. Instead of Winston, Egon, Peter and Ray, the focus is on single mother Callie (Carrie Coon) with her children Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) and Phoebe (Mckenna Grace), who tries to build up a new existence in the rural estate of her deceased father.
At first, that doesn’t sound like “Ghosbusters” at all. But it’s precisely this fresh approach between a loose coming-of-age story and a family film infused with fantasy elements that brings new impulses, which the franchise, which was more than 35 years old at the time, could also do with.
And of course, the house the family moves into is not just any run-down barn, but the home of the original ghost hunter Egon Spengler, which has all kinds of allusions and Easter Eggs to the previous adventures of the Ghostbusters to offer. And at the latest when the Ecto-1 lets his distinctive siren howl again, some viewers will surely have a little tear of joy in the corner of their eye.
.. BUT NOT PERFECT!
Unfortunately, it becomes a bit too much with the allusions to the original series towards the finale. Director Jason Reitman (“Juno”), who has virtually inherited the series from his father Ivan (“Twins”), falls into a dull retelling of the first part – Gozer and key guard chaos included. Here, a little more courage to go its own way would certainly have done the film good. But at the latest when the old Ghostbusters make another appearance and Murray, Aykroyd and Hudson fire up the proton blaster one last time, it’s hard not to like the film.
We can look forward to seeing how the franchise develops in the future. In addition to the sequel “Ghostbusters 2: Firehouse,” currently scheduled to hit theaters on March 24, 2024, directed by “Monster House” creator Gil Kenan, two other exciting projects are in development, an animated film and a new animated series from Netflix. We’ll see what else the future holds for fans of proton beams and ghost traps…
