Movie Review
Ghostbusters Afterlife is the sequel we didn’t know we needed. Son of Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman, who directed the first two wove the nostalgia of the originals throughout this film. Yet, he somehow managed to create something completely fresh while simultaneously reigniting a stagnant franchise.
Reitman and co-writer, Gil Kenan, obviously took the time to figure the best way to tell this story. I was honestly worried this wouldn’t work, but by assembling a wonderful cast and crafting a wonderful story, they were able to capture lightning in a bottle again. The final 40-minutes capture everything the original was.
McKenna Grace steals the show and was perfectly cast. She’s charming and engaging on screen. She is surrounded by a wonderful cast, with Logan Kim being the other highlight for me. Paul Rudd is Paul Rudd, but that’s what I love about Paul Rudd. Finn Wolfhard, Celeste O’Connor and Carrie Coons round out the rest of the main cast.
I won’t bore you with story details, but I can’t wait to see where they take this successfully restarted franchise next. This movie is a love letter to fans of the original movie.
Video
Presented with the HDR (High Dynamic Range) of Dolby Vision Ghostbusters: Afterlife is a stunning movie to watch. Sony crushed it bringing wonderful colour detail and contrast to the wide-open vistas of the plains where the movie takes place.
The VFX pop off the screen, especially the proton streams. The real-world colouring matches what I remember when I visited Alberta a few years back. The blacks are deep and rich looking, and details are incredible. The movie was shot completely digitally, so there is no film grain.
Audio
Sony created a highly dynamic Dolby Atmos track here and it doesn’t take long to show off. It’s used wisely when needed and is most active during the action sequences. Dialog is crystal clear, and the score fills the space wonderfully.
Having dual subwoofers once again pays off as the LFE floor is low and rumbly. My couch vibrated with joy several times throughout the movie. This movie has a LOT of low ends.
Extras
The longest bonus feature is the Making-of, which is a fun watch and runs just shy of 20-minutes. Everything else adds up to approx. 40-minutes. In total, we get about an hour. What’s missing? A commentary would have been nice, but maybe it’s in the Ultimate Boxset (which I have ordered and will review when it arrives).
- We Got One! Easter Eggs Revealed
- Ghostbusters: A Look Back
- A Look Ahead
- Bringing Ecto-1 Back to Life
- The Gearhead’s Guide to Ghostbusters Gadgets
- Special Effects: The Ghosts of Afterlife
- Deleted Scene: Is It Ever Too Late?
- Summoning the Spirit: Making Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Conclusion and Final Thoughts
After the 2016 movie nearly ended any chance of another Ghostbusters movie, we get this nostalgia-laden take from the son of the original director and Sony put the effort into making a killer physical media release. This 4K UltraHD release absolutely knocks it out of the park with a stunning visual and audio presentation. Extras, well… they are okay, I guess.
Buy from: Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | BestBuy.com | Zavvi
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is also available in the Ultimate Edition Boxset ( Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | BestBuy.com) being released on February 1st.