Film Review: Who Ya Gonna Call in ‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’

CHICAGO – This latest attempt to revive the beloved 1980’s franchise is a curious rumination on nostalgia. It’s so heavily indebted to the original, references are treated as holy relics to be revered and worshiped. But it also makes the compelling case – to begin with – for the futility of trying to turn the film into a franchise.

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Transferring the action from New York City to small town Oklahoma, the film follows the grandchildren of original Ghostbuster Egon Spengler. Financially strapped single mom Callie Spengler (Carrie Coon) packs up her two kids played by Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor (“Stranger Things” Finn Wolfhard) and heads to the Spengler dirt farm where her Dad was working on some kind of strange experiment before his sudden passing. Carrie and her kids take up residence in the crumbling farm house and attempt to blend in, Phoebe is the Spengler’s scientific minded offspring and Trevor mostly gets marooned in a teen romance subplot. Phoebe also pals around with a pint sized paranormal expert from school named Podcast (Logan Kim) while she begins to uncover her grandfather’s Ghostbusting legacy.

“Ghostbusters: Afterlife” is in theaters beginning November 19th. Featuring Carrie Coon, Mckenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, Logan Kim, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Sigourney Weaver. Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan. Directed by Jason Reitman. Rated “PG-13”