The official word is out: there will be a new Ghostbusters movie.
After years of constant rumors, half-written/rejected scripts, and lukewarm talks with the original cast, director Paul Feig, who brought us the sometimes-humorous Bridesmaids, confirmed that he is making a new Ghostbusters.
Paul Feig confirmed via Twitter that he is making new Ghostbusters
As far as the all-female cast, I am not really for or against it. After all, this isn’t a remake, it’s a reboot, or a sequel. If Feig has a solid idea and can make it work, then it really doesn’t matter what gender happens to hold the top billing. However, if “all-female” is not meant to be a gimmick, it is a little tiresome that it’s in the description of the movie every time someone talks about it. Probably because it is a great eye-catcher. The original four were all males, so making the new four all females and constantly talking about it is a perfect way to get more publicity. Tiresome, but reality. Again, I don’t care if actors or actresses, play the title roles; just write a good movie and quit dwelling on it.
The term “hilarious women” is a little more irritating. It just immediately makes me feel that they are going to try TOO hard for laughs. Seriously…if you have to tell your audience that something is hilarious, it probably isn’t. One of the great things about the original Ghostbusters was that the humor was subtle most of the time; it was built-in and quirky. It wasn’t in-your-face joke after joke. It wasn’t obnoxious and slapstick. Again, don’t tell me about the hilarious women in the movie; just write a great movie!
I am honestly hoping for a humorous and exciting movie that proves women can actually carry a plot without it devolving into “chick flick” territory. If Feig and Dippold can manage to write characters that are entertaining and real, and stay away from the “overcame gender odds”, “girl-power”, and “loud and crude tough lady” clichés, the movie might have a chance of winning over the critics. Stay true to the original concept; keep the foul-mouthed nonsense at a minimum and make the humor subtle and fun. The loud, crude, obnoxious woman with something to prove has been done to death. Constant vulgarity and expletives are not replacements for clever wit and comical lines.
Yes, there will be a new Ghostbusters movie!
The original Ghostbusters took a great idea and created characters that could believably bring that storyline to life. Ghostbusters was funny, and not because a lot of ridiculous funny things happened. It didn’t have to rely on hilarity, because, unlike most current comedies that are basically just supposedly-funny stuff happening to semi-funny characters, Ghostbusters had a mostly straight script with straight dialogue, but little bits of humor were constantly injected throughout. That is what gave the movie its charm.
The likelihood of the new movie script being written AROUND the actresses instead of the actresses bringing their own personality to already-written characters seems extremely high. The up-front statement that the cast will be all “hilarious women” when the story line isn’t even developed yet makes me worried that they are going to throw the top four comedic actresses into a sub-par plot and hope that star-power alone will carry the movie. Settle down on the gimmick-teasers, Paul Feig, and just focus on writing a solid, entertaining, and humorous script that the actresses’ personalities will enhance, not overpower. Comedic actresses can shine! Don’t clutter up their characters with stereotypes or agendas; just let them be Ghostbusters! Modernizing the ghost-busting crew with new technology and pitting them against scarier ghosts sounds like it could be a pretty cool movie. If Feig pulls off what he is intending to do, perhaps this reboot won’t be a disaster.
Honestly? I am not yet excited about this movie being made; in fact, at this point I kind of dread it, but not any more than the level of dread I feel when any classic is tampered with. Probably a good 80-90% of the comments I have read on the Internet indicate that most people feel the same way. It will be interesting to watch as more information is released about the cast and plot line. It really does have the potential to be a good movie. Right now, though, the overwhelming majority in the court of public opinion appears to be a big thumbs-down.