Ghostbusters

"Do you believe in UFOs, astral projections, mental telepathy, ESP, clairvoyance, spirit photography, telekinetic movement, full trance mediums, the Loch Ness monster and the theory of Atlantis?"

"Ah, if there's a steady paycheck in it, I'll believe anything you say."

The Paranormal department of Columbia University is inhabited by 3 scientists: Drs. Peter Venkman (Murray), Ray Stantz (Aykroyd), and Egon Spengler (Ramis). Stantz and Spengler spend their time researching the paranormal and meeting anyone with a rare experience, while Venkman spends his time mocking thei endeavors. Everything changes when they witness an actual ghost, and are fired from Columbia.

With faith renewed in his colleagues, Venkman suggests starting their own ghost catching business. Their first paying customer, Dana Barrett (Weaver) has another dimension inside her refrigerator and eggs that fry themselves on the table... and her neighbor, Louis Tully (Moranis) is attacked by a demon hound. Meanwhile, business picks up and the trio hire a receptionist, Janine (Potts), and an additional ghost buster, Winston (Hudson), to keep up with the demand.


Who ya gonna call? With a catchy title song (written by Ray Parker Jr.), memorable one liners, and a well-known comedic cast, this film is anything but forgettable! I grew up watching the 1980s Ghostbusters cartoon, and grew to love the film. Bill Murray delivers a slew of sarcastic and funny lines, and has the best exchanges of the film

"Egon, this reminds me of the time you tried to drill a hole through your head. Remember that?"
"That would have worked if you hadn't stopped me."

While Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis (who doubled as the writers of the film) get some funny lines, they mostly function as the catalyst for Venkman. The fourth member of the team, Ernie Hudson, has the least screen time and only a few memorable moments on screen... his character is introduced last, but after he is a part of the team, he still doesn't fit in. I'm not sure if the fault is the actor, who I can't remember seeing outside the Ghostbusters franchise, or the script. Perhaps the problem is the other big players... Murray and Aykroyd were SNL giants, and Ramis holds his own... but adding another comedian could be too much.

The effects seem dated now, but work with the film. The actors are the focus, with the effects adding to the story. Unlike today, when a film like this would be more about the ghosts and all the cool things that could happen with all the technology we have, with the actors serving as props for the effects. I prefer seeing the actors and the story at the focus. An excellent film that you keep coming back to....

Ghostbusters (1984) 105 minutes
Director: Ivan Reitman
Starring: Bill Murray as Dr. Peter Venkman
Dan Aykroyd as Dr. Raymond Stantz
Sigourney Weaver as Dana Barrett
Harold Ramis as Dr. Egon Spengler
Rick Moranis as Louis Tully
Annie Potts as Janine Melnitz
William Atherton as Walter Peck
Ernie Hudson as Winston Zeddmore