“This film is sh**.”
“If anyone likes this film, you are a traitor to the classic!”
And there’s plenty more where that came from. Ever since this film came out, I noticed there was a barrage of hate being thrown at it. Which got me thinking; why are people raging against this film? Is it just that the idea of a remake of one of the greatest films of all times ticks people off? Is it the all female cast? Is it the iconic name being slapped on something that is far from what the name stood for? Well, Let me break it down and analyze each possible point. But first, I’ll tell you my take on the film.
On it’s own, I thought the film wasn’t that bad. But when you compare it to the original, this one doesn’t even deserve to stand on the same pedestal as it. I get that they were trying to go the “Star Wars: the Force Awakens,” approach. Having a story that is similar to the original but changing it up a bit to meet modern standards and make it into a new film series. But with this film, I think they were mixing old with new and randomly throwing in references to the original that I’m guessing they thought people who liked the original would appreciate. The only problem is its done very clumsy. Perhaps they should have just cut out the references and made it into a stand alone film like in “The Force Awakens.”
With that said, I don’t think this film deserves so much hatred. It’s not the best thing in the world, but it’s also not the worst. So why all the hate? Does it have to do with the name? Kind of. The name stood for something iconic. Or at least that’s what a lot of people believed. It did stand for something that a lot of people remember. A film that is watched over and over again and never gets old. But surely, it can’t be the name alone. Perhaps it has more to do with just the name being slapped on something that doesn’t even hold it’s ground to what it represented. And I’m sure a lot of people will scream at the screen, “It’s about the film itself.” Okay, well then let me ask you this: “What about this film makes you mad?” On surface this might seem like an obvious question. But really think about it.
One answer might be the all female cast. If that was one of your answers then chances are you might have already faced a backlash of feminists or you’re about to. I am not saying I am one of them. But it does puzzle me that so many people would claim they hate the film because of the female cast. In fact, I actually find it to be a pointless reason to hate the film. When you think about it, even if they managed to have an all male cast, I’m sure people would still rage about that because no one would even match the creative talents of the original cast members. Finding people to cast in a Ghostbuster’s film (whether remake or something new) is a hard task. It definitely won’t live up to the standards of the original, but if you manage to find a team that can bring enough energy to the film like the original cast, then it will work. And that’s why I actually had no problems with the female cast in this film. They were fun and engaging and had enough energy to try to pull the weight of the film. However, if you didn’t like the all female casting choice, then that’s okay. I wouldn’t go so far as to call them woman haters. I believe that their reason behind it might be because their hearts are dedicated to the original.
In the end, this might just be the case as to why the hatred is just heaped upon them. Most of our hearts are just dedicated to something that was great so we fail to take in something that might be new. We don’t want it to exist because we already know that something that is already perfect is best to be left alone. But at the same time, there are people who are open-minded, and they don’t mind seeing something new because they want to see an new idea come to light and be the start of a new trilogy. Unfortunately this film doesn’t give us that in full, but there are sparks of what could be a new potential idea. But just because these people exist, does not mean they need to be destroyed. We are all human beings, so we’re not going to like some things for the exact same reasons. We don’t have the same thought process. And that’s why we just need to accept things for what they are and leave well enough alone. We all have our own thoughts and opinions on this film, but we don’t need to abuse people who think differently then our own. In end, we all love the original ghostbusters, that’s something we have in common. But don’t try to strike down those who see the new ghostbusters as something that is adequate.
Nicole Rousseau 