Forget what you've heard & go see Ghostbusters

Many critics have been pretty tough on the new Ghostbusters move. One local movie reviewer said recently that it did not follow the old plot exactly, did not use the same jokes, and that the characters were not exactly like the first movie. To that, I say:

Thank goodness!

There's only one Billy Murray and one Dan Aykroyd. They were the best suited for the characters at the time of the original movie in 1984. But, who wants to pay good money (we paid $32 to get three people into a matinee) to see a simple remake? If I want to see the original Ghostbusters, I'll watch it on DVD for free.

Maybe I'd feel more nostalgic about the 1984 film if I'd seen it back then. Even though I was a movie-going teenager back then, I admittedly spent more time cruising our local Sonic and bowling alley than watching movies. I watched the 1984 version for the first time last week. I like the 2016 version better.

Now wait a minute. Give me some credit. I don't like the 2016 version better because I'm a woman and the lead roles are played by women. I'd have liked this just as much if some other comedians, male or female, took their place. But, Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones all had the chemistry that the previous Ghostbusters shared, maybe even stronger. It was good to get a little more back story on the beginning of the characters' ghost research and to see the characters grow together as their business and research grew.

Another complaint I heard from a critic is that the movie is "too scienc-y." You don't have to be a rocket scientist or understand half of the terminology to absorb the depth of what's happening in the movie. Researchers use facts and formulas, controls and tests to collect data to prove or disprove their theories. I think science is pretty important when you're trying to convince of world of non-believers, especially in the science community, that ghosts exist. I think the introduction of more science makes this movie more credible than the first.

Okay. Here's the truth. I went to the movie planning to hate it. I really hoped to see a continuation of the 1984 movie, a sort of passing of the gavel from one generation of comedians to the next. The acting, special effects and action changed my opinion. Of the three of us who went to see it, two of us liked it better than the original and all three agreed that it was worth a trip to the theater to see.