Rating: 5/5
Today there was Ghostbusters Legacy/Afterlife (we Germans with our special English names …) – already at 2 p.m. in the cinema. Fortunately, I’m on vacation the week anyway and of course couldn’t wait to see the film in the cinema. The anticipation had been rising for weeks anyway and after the final trailer I was so hyped that it hardly seemed likely that the film would live up to these expectations. But from the beginning … This review is spoiler-free.
Trailer zu Ghostbusters – Legacy
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Contents:
New York, the Ghostbusters, it was all years ago. On a remote farm, a strange hermit tries his best to escape an invisible force. A plan seems to have been made, but it is obviously going wrong. And a few days later, the daughter and grandchildren of the man learn of his death and visit the farm, where many memories of a glorious past rest – and a dark secret that could mean the end of the world as we know it …
Criticism:
Ghostbusters is one of those OVER classics. One of those films that no sequel can ever really do justice to. Even the direct successor, with the same cast a few years after the original, didn’t have the same irresistible dynamic that made the original. From the 2016er Ghostbusters (which I still appreciate very much) we don’t even start here, because he was already in other fairways.
Indeed Legacy (I’ll stick with the German subtitle, because the film actually feels like a legacy movie and therefore the title is aptly) hits a different line, it kind of goes straight to it, despite the time lag to the original. Of course, anyone who has seen the trailer knows who it is “Einsiedler” is about who has not seen them – it quickly becomes clear who it is about and whose grandchildren are playing the main role here.
And that brings us to the really, really great cast of the film: Because above all you can find here McKenna Gracewho play the role of Phoebe plays, a 12 year old girl who is quite the grandfather. The slightly unworldly but lovable young lady quickly becomes a popular figure and at the same time she is the perfect anchor for viewers – old and new – who want to find their way into this world (again). You follow her and her boyfriend Podcast – played charming-nerdy by Logan Kim – on this trip, while the two, together with teacher Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd), decipher the legacy of the Ghostbusters and slowly find out why their grandfather camped so far out in the country.
The trio is supported by Finn Wolfhard as Phoebe’s brother Trevor and Celeste OConnor as his new girlfriend Luckywho slide into the adventure more by chance and mother Callie, played by Carrie Coonwho only knew her father as an absent man who never cared about her.
The core of the film is actually just as much on the subject here Legacies as on the subject family. And here Vin Diesel could cut a big slice for the almost franchise, because where he often talks about it, she finds her place right in the heart of the film. Phoebie is difficult because she is different, Mother Callie has it difficult because she is a single parent, has debts and never felt noticed by her father, Trevor was annoyed by the new situation as a teenager, far away from home, and looks at the local teenagers Connection – and all three have the spirit of what their family could have been if things had turned out differently.
if Legacy starts, then the film finds itself in a natural, but very detached from the originals functioning position again. Sure, you gradually discover the various reference points to the old films and one element after the other appears and is woven into the film – but none of it feels stilted, none of it feels like it doesn’t belong here or does would have simply been pressed into the film. Sure, the nostalgia value is there and it really kicks in if you love the originals – but here it feels completely authentic and sincere. Here someone wanted to set a monument to a film that he loves and that he lives. A film from a real fan of all that Ghostbusters that mattered back then, for fans of those things.
And there was Jason Reitman also simply the right choice – calm, almost old-fashioned. he takes the time he needs to establish characters, uncover the secrets of the house, and tell his story. And as clear as it is to every fan right from the start, who the hermit is who “Dirtfarmer”, has been there in a foreign country – it feels so wonderful how Reitman not only commemorates the original, but also his deceased cast member. The heartfelt respect for Ramis, his life, his work and also his unfortunately much too early death – he is carried through the film and also finds an incredibly moving realization in the film.
The heart defines this film – and even if the humor, chemistry of the actors and all the small and big surprises work incredibly well here – without this respect, without this emotional basis, the film would certainly not work so well. Tears in my eyes, goosebumps and a big grin – all of this accompanied me through the film and left me deeply satisfied with the end result.
Conclusion:
Ghostbusters Legacy is everything this film should be and more. A beautiful, humorous, heartfelt memorial for the original, for Harold Ramis and for a reminder of a better time. A monument that works great as a film, but at the same time takes the legacy of the real Ghostbusters seriously and shoulders it with dignity. An inspiring and great film that left me completely satisfied when I left the cinema.
There are touched and enthusiastic ones from me 5/5 hats respectively. 10/10 points
a fan of the originals and a very, very clear recommendation to go to the cinema to everyone who loves the films so much.
A little hint at the end: staying seated until the end of the credits is worth it!
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