Rated PG-13 for supernatural action and some crude humor.
Starring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon and Chris Hemsworth
Directed by Paul Feig (Spy, The Heat and Bridesmaids)
A brilliant reboot!
Ghostbusters makes its long-awaited return, rebooted with a cast of hilarious new characters. Thirty years after the beloved original franchise took the world by storm, director Paul Feig brings his fresh take to the supernatural comedy, joined by some of the funniest actors working today – Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Chris Hemsworth. They are here to save the world!
It’s been more than 30 years since the original Ghostbusters first hit the big screen. I remember seeing it in the theaters and laughing a lot. As I got older I realized two things, I missed more than a handful of jokes and there were several layers of genius to this film. With a perfect mix of comedy and supernatural action, Ghostbusters became an instant classic. So how would Paul Feig reboot this iconic film?
Brilliantly…that’s how.
Thankfully, the screenplay is smart and funny, and the cast is flat-out hilarious.
The basic plot is lifted from the original movie, which is referenced in almost every scene. Most of this feels like inside jokes (that I’m in on) but are lost on younger audiences. Personally I loved seeing the original cast members turn up here and there in random cameos.
Like the original, the film stars current and former Saturday Night Live stars. Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon are so funny and Melissa McCarthy is always hilarious. Throw in Chris Hemsworth who plays a dumber-than-a-bag-of-rocks receptionist and you have the perfect cast.
Paul Feig keeps everything moving at a great pace, filling each scene with eye-catching effects and/or witty dialogue and visual jokes. No doubt this is the launch of a new franchise.
Ghostbusters is “Theater Worthy” for sure.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
There is no sex or nudity and the language is on the mild side. There is one S-word and a few others.
The ghost scenes are on par with the original movie. Nothing intensely frightening… but could give younger children a fright nonetheless.
CONVERSATION STARTER:
- How would you describe each of the ghostbusters?
- What are their differences?
- What do they have in common?
- How were they able to get along and work together?
- How can we as a church/youth group be more like the ghostbusters and be one body with different parts?
Read 1 Corinthians 12:15-19 (NIV)
15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be?
Jonathan McKee
Jonathan McKee is the author of over twenty books including the brand new The Guy's Guide to FOUR BATTLES Every Young Man Must Face; The Teen’s Guide to Social Media & Mobile Devices; If I Had a Parenting Do Over; and the Amazon Best Seller - The Guy's Guide to God, Girls and the Phone in Your Pocket. He speaks to parents and leaders worldwide, all while providing free resources for youth workers on TheSource4YM.com. Jonathan, his wife Lori, and their three kids live in California.