Ghostbusters II (1989)

Directed by Ivan Reitman. Starring Bill Murray, Sigourney Weaver, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, Peter MacNicol, David Margulies, Kurt Fuller, Harris Yulin, Wilhelm von Homburg, Janet Margolin. [PG]

Inevitable second helping of yucks and yuks offers some of the same pleasures as its smash hit predecessor, but without the freshness or consistency to make anyone forget that they’re leftovers (microwaved slime?). The years haven’t been kind to the ghost-busting crew, and they’ve gone their separate ways since saving New York City (and perhaps the whole world) from an untimely doom. But when a river of psycho-reactive glop is discovered flowing underground, and Weaver’s eccentric boss (MacNicol) gets possessed by the spirit of a painting-bound tyrannical 16th century magician named Vigo the Carpathian, the boys reunite for a supernatural showdown. Slack pacing and a generally disinterested star performance from Murray are as much to blame for the mixed results as the uninspired plot, but there are still enough laughs (big and small) to warrant interest from fans; on the rare occasions that the Ghostbusters get to simply marinate in their unforced chemistry, some of the old magic is apparent. Pity that none of the set pieces really stand out—the Statue of Liberty setup to the tepid climax comes off as especially forced and absurd, even in a knowingly absurd supernatural comedy like this. Chloe Webb has a funny cameo as a guest on Murray’s talk show. Other cameos include Cheech Marin and Brian Doyle Murray; plus, director Reitman’s young son, Jason, can be spotted at a birthday party near the beginning. Vigo’s voice was dubbed by Max von Sydow.

59/100