Review - Ghostbusters II (1989)

        Happy New Year, everyone. Chuck here, and to ring in the year 2024, I would like to take a look at the 1989 comedy Ghostbusters II. Directed by Ivan Reitman, this movie sees the returns of Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and Ernie Hudson, along with such newcomers as Kurt Fuller and Peter MacNicol. 

       The movie is set five years after the original Ghostbusters, and a lot has happened. First, a string of lawsuits put the Ghostbusters out of business, Ray is now running a bookshop, Egon is working in a research lab, Venkman is hosting a television series called "World of the Psychic," and Ray and Winston make occasional party appearances for a quick buck. Dana Barrett, meanwhile, is a single mother of an infant son named Oscar,.whose buggy ends up getting away from her after it runs through a puddle of pink slime. Concerned, Dana goes to Egon for help, and he brings both Ray and Venkman in on the case. 

         Finding both Oscar and the nursery he stays in to be normal, they get some strong readings in the street where the buggy stopped. Digging into the street, they end up finding way down to the remains of the old Pneumatic Transit system that serviced New York before the Subway, and currently housing a river of pink slime. Unfortunately, the trio are arrested for unlawfully digging into the street and inadvertently knocking out power. Meanwhile, at the art museum Dana works at, we see her boss, Janosz Poha, fall under the influence of the spirit of Vigo the Carpathian, whose spirit is possessing a painting of Vigo. 

        The next day, Ray, Egon, and Venkman are on trial, with Louis Tully serving as their attorney, and the case doesn't go well, as the Ghostbusters we're under a judicial restraining order preventing them from busting ghosts. And the judge presiding over the case, Judge Wexler, finds the trio guilty, and goes on a tirade against the trio, causing a sample of the pink slime to react, until a pair of ghosts emerge, the Scoleri brothers. Wexler recognizes the pair, having previously tried them for murder and given them the electric chair. Seeing the Scoleri brothers wreak havoc in the courtroom, Wexler rescinds the restraining order against the Ghostbusters, dismisses their case, and begs them for help. So, Ray, Egon, and Venkman slip on the old Proton Packs, and capture the Scoleri brothers in a ghost trap. The Ghostbusters are back in business. 

        After a montage of catching ghosts across New York, the Ghostbusters also look into the slime oozing up across the city. The slime itself reacts to human emotions, predominantly negative ones. However, Ray and Egon are working on seeing if they can get it to react to positive emotions, and learn that the slime enjoys music, predominantly the song "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" by Jackie Wilson. The source of the slime? Apparently, all the collected negative emotions of the people of New York. Unfortunately, the slime ends up attacking Dana and Oscar by bringing their bathtub to life, and they flee to Venkman's apartment. 

          The next day, Ray, Venkman, Egon, and Winston head to the museum, and take photos of the Vigo painting to investigate it. Upon analyzing the photos, they discover the river of pink slime flows to the museum, and Vigo's spirit does, indeed possess the painting. Meanwhile, at the museum, Vigo and Janosz discuss their plan: Vigo will possess Oscar, and Janosz will be with Dana, and the two will raise Vigo as their child. Unfortunately, the Mayor of New York doesn't believe the Ghostbusters' story, and his assistant Jack Hardemeyer has them committed to Bellevue. 

        Janosz, appearing as a ghost nanny, kidnaps Oscar, more slime rises up all over New York, and tons of ghosts show up, including the Titanic arriving at the Port. The Mayor, finally out of options, decides to call in the Ghostbusters, and fires Hardemeyer for having the Ghostbusters committed. Now free, the Ghostbusters finally put the picture together: Vigo wants to return to the world, and has chosen Oscar to be his vessel. Unfortunately, the Proton Packs aren't enough to get past the slime engulfing the museum. So, the Ghostbusters take positively charged slime and animate the Statue of Liberty, guiding it to the museum, garnering happy cheers from the people of New York as the Statue walks the streets. 

       Gaining access to the museum, the Ghostbusters slime Janosz with the positive slime, save Oscar, and defeat Vigo. And, of course, the people of New York singing "Auld Lange Syne" to ring in the New Year helped weaken Vigo's power. Oh, and Louis suited up as a Ghostbuster to help out, as well. Happy endings all around. 

       Okay, so Ghostbusters II was certainly weaker than the original movie. By cutting back on some of the language, not having the Ghostbusters smoking, and focusing on keeping Dana's baby safe, this movie definitely seemed to be targeted towards younger kids. But, I still enjoyed it, just to a lesser extent than both the original movie and 2021's Ghostbusters: Afterlife. 

       The returning cast of Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and Ernie Hudson all did a good job, as did Peter MacNicol as Janosz and Kurt Fuller as Hardemeyer. And, I will admit that the dual performance of Wilhelm von Homburg and Max von Sydow as Vigo the Carpathian was really good, but felt like a step down from Gozer in the first movie in terms of being a Ghostbusters villain. 

       The visual designs for some of the ghosts were pretty creative, and the writing by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis is, once again, on point. Unfortunately, like I said, the film was aimed at a somewhat younger audience and scales back on some of the more risque elements that made the original so much fun. But, I do admire the work that director Ivan Reitman did with this movie. So, I'm giving Ghostbusters II a rating of 4.45/5. 

        Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and I'll see you guys tomorrow with my Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2024.