Who you gonna call?

I will say upfront that the new Ghostbusters movie was review-proof for me. Long ago, I decided that I was going to see this movie on opening weekend no matter what anyone thought of it, to vote with my dollars in favor of movies with female leads, and against the whiny dudebros who feel entitled to demand that no such movies exist. To paraphrase something my friend D said on Facebook, I ain't afraid of no ghosts, but patriarchy is another story. Plus, I do have a certain nostalgia for the original, even if it hasn't held up very well in some respects (in particular its casual and not-so-casual sexism). And last, I have a mixed record with Melissa McCarthy/Paul Feige movies -- I liked Bridesmaids well enough, but its gross-out humor aspects were not for me; I enjoyed Spy but didn't fall completely in love with it; and I did not care for The Heat. All of this to say that I didn't have particularly high expectations (despite good early word of mouth from friends), but I was determined to see it anyway.

Fortunately, my expectations were not only met but exceeded. This movie is great, certainly much better than the trailers would suggest. Fun and funny, all four leads are delightful -- especially Kate MacKinnon as the irrepressible Holtzmann; a lot of the early buzz has circled around her performance, and the praise is highly deserved -- and Chris Hemsworth is a hoot as a perfect gender-flip of the sexy dim-bulb secretary stereotype. It works as a homage to the original film, and it equally stands alone as its own story. Perhaps more than anything, I love that all of the most important relationships in this film are among women. There's no overt romance at all; instead, the movie's emotional core is Abby and Erin's rekindled friendship. Although not perfect by any means (there are plenty of issues I could point to, if I were so inclined), what Hollywood tent-pole film is? When I have that much fun at a movie, I'm not inclined to spent a lot of time going after its flaws. That's what rewatches are for, and I definitely want to see it again; if nothing else, the audience was laughing so hard, and in some places cheering and clapping, that I'm sure I missed a number of the jokes.

( A couple minor spoilers. )

In sum, I definitely recommend this movie. See it in theaters, soon if you can, not just to support entertaining female-led action comedies, but because it's a blast, and being in a theater filled with other fans enhances the experience. (Stay through all the credits!)