Ghostbusters II

A rather underwhelming sequel, Ghostbusters II follows the title characters (Bill Murray’s Peter Venkman, Dan Aykroyd’s Ray Stantz, Harold Ramis’ Egon Spengler, and Ernie Hudson’s Winston Zeddemore) as they come out of retirement to battle an ages-old entity known as Vigo (Wilhelm von Homburg). It becomes apparent, eventually, that Ghostbusters II feels more like a direct remake of its superior predecessor than a followup, as the movie, written by Ramis and Aykroyd, features (or suffers from) a narrative that often takes a distressingly similar path as 1984’s Ghost Busters (eg Venkman woos Sigourney Weaver’s Dana Barrett, the gang are detained just prior to the final showdown, etc, etc). The movie’s pervasively smug atmosphere is perpetuated by an ongoing reliance on self-referential elements – why, for example, does the sign on the Ghostbusters’ building feature the symbol for two? – and there’s generally no avoiding the feeling that the movie wouldn’t exist had the original flopped (ie most elements in the story come off as forced and inorganic, especially the underlying emphasis on the Ghostbusters viewed as villains rather than heroes). It’s clear, then, that Ghostbusters II benefits substantially from the still-irresistible chemistry between the central characters, with Murray’s completely affable performance anchoring the proceedings and, in general, offsetting its more questionable elements. The finale, which doesn’t really work, ultimately ensures that the whole thing ends on a decidedly lackluster note, and it’s not difficult to see why Ghostbusters II has amassed the reputation of an inferior work in the years since its 1989 release.

**1/2 out of ****