Discuss Ghostbusters: Afterlife, released on November 19, 2021 and directed by Jason Reitman.
#4966558
Chicken, He Clucked wrote: February 1st, 2022, 12:44 pm I guess maybe around May-June we'll get an announcement, but given the long delay getting Afterlife out and them wanting to establish the longevity of the franchise, you'd kinda think it might've been announced sooner to drive Afterlife buzz.
Maybe they're gonna wait until the home video release buzz quiets down.
#4966559
Any (potential) next installment will be fascinating to me because now they hopefully will discard the safety net of nostalgia. As cool as it was to see Gozer once again, the lore of Ghostbusters is filled with so many weird and creepy entities I'd love to see a new big bad. Maybe something similar to a Vigo/Janoz dynamic where there is a human antagonist as well.
#4966565
All I can ask for is whatever the next installment may be not to cater to woke politics and just keep it as fun as possible. If the next setting takes place back in New York you are still going to have that Nalstogic safety net in place. You can't rebuild the fire house without keeping the old/new equipment out and about. I'm sure the pool table and arcades will be there. Maybe a familiar toaster on a familiar pool table etc. I want to see a cleaned up Ecto as Winston walks into the fire house.

Jason can still keep the over the top easter eggs for the first five, to ten minutes of the film then switch to the team taking up a case outside of New York. If more movies are indeed planed theyll have to cover franchising the company. Do an avengers type thing and build up to something bigger then Gozer which is causing the ghosts to return after their 3o year hiatus.

(We aren't going to avoid Jason's history with nostalgia. We aren't guranteed his return to direct but wer'e all hoping he get's that job.)
#4966585
69428scj wrote: January 27th, 2022, 7:57 pm
jonogunn wrote: January 27th, 2022, 4:04 pm Until stated otherwise It makes more sense to me that they had 2 vehicles. Ray went back to the guy he bought the first one from and he had another laying around. Maybe he used to own a funeral business?

The Ecto-1 was retired and just sitting around somewhere after they built the Ecto-1A and have been using that for some time. Then maybe during a car chase battle with some spooks the Ecto-1A got wrecked and they had to revert back to the Ecto-1 and then implementing the idea of a gunner seat. They didn’t bother with any more upgrades because it was towards the end of their career and money was tight.
Not to totally take this thread off topic, but I've always been a two-car supporter and I think I have a theory that answers why the 1 is in Afterlife and not the 1A if the two-car theory is correct. Here's a screen cap of the end of GB II. Notice what's not there? Yep, the 1A. Notice what it? The Statue of Liberty right where the 1A was.
Image

Now, before anyone says, "But they drove the car to get to the Statue of Liberty!" know that the customs house aka museum is literally across the street from Battery Park, the place where you hop on the ferry to go to Liberty Island. The guys walked over to battery park to hop the ferry. SO, cut to the chase: Lady Liberty fell on the 1A while the 1 was mothballed hence why we see the 1 in Afterlife and not the 1A.
I always thought that the Ecto 1 and 1A were the same car but just modified for publicity but this is hilarious, it's perfect.
#4966587
I’ve always wanted the GBs to franchise with teams in other places. Each use their own vehicles but receive company kits to convert them to Ectos. We get new cars while the original branch still uses the Cadillac.

If not franchised. Threat is something totally new and outside of NY. Could be kind of be a road trip where they track and bust ghosts along the way. Introduce a new Ecto Van/RV with a mobile containment unit.

Thought about this recently. More of an opening scene. Not an actual plot.

Phoebe and Trevor (now older) goto school in NY and work part time at the firehouse. Phoebe attends a science convention to give a presentation of the proton pack/trap. A mad scientist ghost crashes the event and she must use the equipment. Trevor arrives in the Ecto1 just as she catches him.
#4966591
I’d like the idea of a sequel featuring a containment meltdown and a fraudulent competitor with Boston Dynamics style high tech versions of the equipment.

They could also introduce Ecto-2 for some aerial support in the finale. For locales, Coney Island at night would be a cool place to stage something.

(I relinquish all rights to any suggestions made above and elsewhere on this forum etc.)
#4966597
If they were to expand on that idea Roller Ghoster would be a good basis for that. The operater of that ride ends up being the big bad. When they get there they not only find the owner of the park is operating A Ghostbusters ride without permission but he's using real ghosts to scare his customers. Callie get's rich with a lawsuit.

That would be an awesome opening. A ghost they miss ends up keeping tab's on the team.
#4966600
I’ve thought about a competitor too. Ghoul-Grabbers or some other play on the name. One that claims they’re safer and more efficient but don’t take the main threat seriously or make a mistake that leads to the main threat. Of course they must team up with the GB for the end.

There’s a lot of cool ideas they could go with but I think they first need to establish who exactly the team is now. I definitely want Phoebe back and Winston and Ray should return because they’re the most invested. I honestly don’t need Bill Murray. I highly doubt he’s interested at all anymore. He really wasn’t before.

Part 4 needs to be about Pheobe and possibly Trevor getting into the business. Franchising, Trips and Competitors don’t really fit yet. They need to be operational again so those ideas have reason to happen.

Mr. Grooberson could marry Callie but I have no idea how to include Podcast or Lucky. I really liked Podcast too. I can’t really see him or Lucky moving out of Summerville just to follow them though. It’d be weird.
#4966607
Ya visiting works and it’d be fun to have Podcast goto Ray’s bookstore but I meant more long term if they intended for them to continue.

I’m not sure if only Pheobe and Trevor were supposed to be “passed the torch” or all 4 of them. Lucky was the biggest outsider that just got roped into it so her character could go either way. It depends if they really want to keep that relationship.

I guess another idea could be they open up their own GB service in Summerville while Winston and Ray run the NY one. It’s such a small town though unless those unleashed ghosts like BugEye are still free.
#4966611
The way I see if going forward is Winston is the keystone of the business going forward. He's got the financial backing and the drive to keep the business alive. He's already paying Ray's rent for the bookstore and has apparently bought back the firehouse.

I don't see the Spenglers staying in Summerville and they don't have any roots there except for the week or so they're there. As an old family friend, I could see him helping Callie out, taking care of her father's debt (and some of hers) and setting them up in New York (or Jersey... it's RIGHT THERE and way cheaper to live in). Set it during the summer when school would be out, Trevor and Phoebe now being employed at GB HQ. Grooberson would be the only new fulltime employee. Lucky could be in town checking out college campuses and Podcast just there visiting.

To keep the old guard around, Winston would be kind of hands off since he has his other business to manage and would be there to help Ray with the basic training of the gear. Ray would be their main support and going on any cases with them while helping Phoebe maintain and rebuild the ghost busting gear while being their go-to lore guy. Venkman would stick mainly to management and PR duties (gives Murray a nice out if he doesn't want to come back, but keeps Venkman still 'active').

I like the competitor idea. To tie it into the last scene with the containment unit, start the movie with there being a minor containment breach. Nothing as explosive as what happened in the first movie. More of a pipe bursting, less of a water heater exploding. This spikes the amount of ghosts in the city, brings rise to a competing ghost removal company, and... well, it could borrow a bit from the IDW Ghost Smashers arc where the knock off gear dissipates ghosts, claims it's perminant, then all the "destroyed" ghosts form together as the big bad monster for the movie's finale.
#4966627
Shit, if not for the many delay's this would have been awesome set ups at the grocery stores. The twinkies, ecto cooler, the marshmallows and ceral in all one location like this. Maybe with the next release things will be back to normal and we'll get awesome displays like that. Kind of wonder if more people would have seen the movie if they had more advertising like that.
#4966733
Finally saw the movie and loved it. Felt it was funny but still more intense than the originals. Really enjoyed that. I have lots of opinions on how it works as well as it does and why it had to come out now and not earlier (for this plot) but most of it has been said by others at this point so I won't.
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#4966734
What do you guys think is the absolute best scene in Afterlife?

I already told that I absolutely loved the back and forth between Phoebe and her mom, when Phoebe finds out her granddad was Egon Spengler. The acting, the emotional baggage, the need to be loved and being understood was enough to make me tear up. It felt the most honest scene in the entire movie that was earned, without a leap of logic in sight.

There are some awesome other scenes like the intro, the Muncher chase and Egons reveal at the end, but for me this 'little' scene was it.

Also, I liked the idea (and design) of the lamp. Such a great way to convey Egons presence.
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#4966735
If i had to guess my favorite scene before seeing the movie I would have guessed it was the moment we see the original ghostbusters again but i was surprised upon seeing the movie it was not. I loved the Gozer confrontation up until they appeared most of all. I loved seeing them but i think the moments before were very strong.
#4966740
Alphagaia wrote: February 4th, 2022, 11:18 am What do you guys think is the absolute best scene in Afterlife?

I already told that I absolutely loved the back and forth between Phoebe and her mom, when Phoebe finds out her granddad was Egon Spengler. The acting, the emotional baggage, the need to be loved and being understood was enough to make me tear up. It felt the most honest scene in the entire movie that was earned, without a leap of logic in sight.

Also, I liked the idea (and design) of the lamp. Such a great way to convey Egons presence.
Phoebe and her mom was the first scene that came to mind for me as well. I also initially loved the idea of Phoebe playing chess with Egon (waking up to find the piece has moved) but not so much once the pieces started moving and floating around - I just thought the more subtle approach was way cooler.

For me, Janine's entrance (being the first of the returning cast to appear) was really powerful, I remember an audible gasp from the theater at that moment. Just wish that scene was a little longer. And the two credit scenes, I thought were just perfect in their own ways and sent me out with a huge smile on my face.

(Honorable mention goes to the kids watching Child's Play in Grooberson's class, probably the biggest laugh for me in the movie and a perfect follow up to the Cujo joke.)
#4966747
Just had my second viewing of Ghostbusters Afterlife.

I loved it.

I’ve been a critical voice focusing too much on what the film didn’t do, and with expectations in check I was able to absorb more of it and appreciate what it does do well. Which is a hell of a lot.

I don’t think I processed it fully on first viewing because of the expectation I took into it. The jarring parts weren’t as jarring. The parts I felt were incomplete, including some character arcs… are very much completed. There were a few Podcast laughs I missed first time round. The Muncher sequences are much longer and more intricately directed than I appreciated the first time round. The RTV and gunner seat get a decent amount of use. The mini pufts are in more than couple of shots. The choreography with the guys at the end is logical and clearly mapped out than just standing around in front of the green screen.

But yeah, this is a complete film. I’d love an extended cut with a few extra shots, but I no longer think it needs one to fix it’s “problems”. I even loved the Bill Murray credit scene.

Some of the faults still stand. I’d trim it here and there and Callie could do with some light and shade in the first half, but I am revising my review of the movie to a 4/5 and not that they’re reading, but Jason and Ghost Corp and the team deserve a huge amount of appreciation for what they have given fans. I really hope it’s made enough money for another one.
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#4966751
I don't know if it qualifies at the best scene, but for me something that I'll remember forever was the very end. The ambient sounds of NYC as we pan down to the bridge. The siren preceding the theme kicking in, and the logo animation all came together and hit me like a freight train. Even if we never get another movie, in that moment Ghostbusters was back.
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#4966790
Chicken, He Clucked wrote: February 4th, 2022, 2:16 pm Just had my second viewing of Ghostbusters Afterlife.

I loved it.

I’ve been a critical voice focusing too much on what the film didn’t do, and with expectations in check I was able to absorb more of it and appreciate what it does do well. Which is a hell of a lot.

I don’t think I processed it fully on first viewing because of the expectation I took into it. The jarring parts weren’t as jarring. The parts I felt were incomplete, including some character arcs… are very much completed. There were a few Podcast laughs I missed first time round. The Muncher sequences are much longer and more intricately directed than I appreciated the first time round. The RTV and gunner seat get a decent amount of use. The mini pufts are in more than couple of shots. The choreography with the guys at the end is logical and clearly mapped out than just standing around in front of the green screen.

But yeah, this is a complete film. I’d love an extended cut with a few extra shots, but I no longer think it needs one to fix it’s “problems”. I even loved the Bill Murray credit scene.

Some of the faults still stand. I’d trim it here and there and Callie could do with some light and shade in the first half, but I am revising my review of the movie to a 4/5 and not that they’re reading, but Jason and Ghost Corp and the team deserve a huge amount of appreciation for what they have given fans. I really hope it’s made enough money for another one.
I really appreciate that your opinion has changed on a 2nd viewing. One of the big reasons I read a lot of spoilers before seeing movies like this - it allows me to lower my own expectations. I do not mean that in a negative way. It allows me to get that out of my system before watching a movie I have highly anticipated for a long time. So I can just view it for what it is.

If it makes you feel better - I am one of the crazies who saw it in theaters... seriously lost count. Either 8 or 9 times. Most of all because I loved it and it grew with each viewing. But also to support the movie. That’s not a criticism for people who did not see it multiple times. I saw the movie on every holiday which was better than seeing family...
#4966795
Dr.D wrote: February 4th, 2022, 3:29 pm I don't know if it qualifies at the best scene, but for me something that I'll remember forever was the very end. The ambient sounds of NYC as we pan down to the bridge. The siren preceding the theme kicking in, and the logo animation all came together and hit me like a freight train. Even if we never get another movie, in that moment Ghostbusters was back.
I was able to hold back the tears until that very moment! For all the elements you mention above, that was the bit that got me.
#4966803
Dr.D wrote: February 4th, 2022, 3:29 pm I don't know if it qualifies at the best scene, but for me something that I'll remember forever was the very end. The ambient sounds of NYC as we pan down to the bridge. The siren preceding the theme kicking in, and the logo animation all came together and hit me like a freight train. Even if we never get another movie, in that moment Ghostbusters was back.
That's it.

Afterlife is a good Jasonesque Ghostbusters movie. But it's not really A Ghostbusters movie.
It's a movie about rediscovering the Ghostbusters as people, as a mission, as a job, as a family affair, as a friendship thing.

Now it's all gone back to its roots, the Ghostbusters has been rediscovered. Let's make a Ghostbusters movie.
#4966813
Watched it two nights in a row with different audiences who both enjoyed it. The Muncher chase is so good. The ending does not derail the film - I think I got that wrong too. The younger cast all play a role in the finale and the farewell to Egon lands completely.

It’s hard for me to reconcile how differently I feel about the film on subsequent watches. I don’t know what to think about that - but I do feel bad for all the critical posts I made over the last couple of months. :walterpeck:

Anecdotal, but this seemed to be selling very well based on two trips to my local supermarket this weekend.
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