Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is a surprisingly great sequel

I really, really, really disliked Ghostbusters: Afterlife. I found it soulless at best, and deeply immoral at worst. Nothing about it worked for me, and yet, it was something of a commercial and critical success. Not an overwhelming one, but enough to justify more sequels.

So to say I was skeptical walking into Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire would be an understatement. I try not to have preconceived notions of a film before I see it, but sometimes it’s hard to get excited about certain properties. Especially when they’ve let you down for decades.

Imagine my surprise, when about twenty minutes into Frozen Empire, I noticed a weird sensation. I was having fun.

Sure, you could argue it was the low expectations, but that kind of relief doesn’t last. A film can be “better than expected” and still end up terrible. Frozen Empire exceeds that, even with its numerous faults.

Those issues are best laid out immediately. The film is overstuffed, with at least a handful of plot threads that go nowhere, and some that have no business being included. Why the filmmakers insist on bringing in members of the original film is still beyond me. William Atherton looks like he’s having fun, but did anyone really sit around for four decades asking: “Whatever happened to Councilman Peck?”

Bill Murray looks like he doesn’t want to be there, and his scenes all appear to have been shot separately from the main cast. He gets one good gag in, but all it does is highlight how much of everything else doesn’t work.

Elsewhere, Frozen Empire can’t decide which story it wants to tell. Like it’s worried that this is the last Ghostbuster film they’ll ever make, and they better put in every idea they’ve got. So you get a little bit of family drama as the Spengler descendants try to settle in as the new generation of Ghostbusters. There’s a frustratingly truncated potential love story between Phoebe Spengler and Melody, the ghost of a teenager unable to pass on to the beyond. Kumail Nanjiani shows up as a slacker who might be the last living firekeeper, an ancient version of proto-Ghostbusters. The aforementioned Peck is now mayor, and still out to close down the Ghostbusters for good. (Though why he didn’t do it in the four decades they were out of business is a mystery.)

It’s just all too busy and feels like at least two separate movies forced into one. Each storyline has the potential to be great, but they consistently trip over themselves to get even a chance in the spotlight.

The bits that work, really knock it out of the park. McKenna Grace is the shining star of the show, effortlessly carrying the picture on her back. Her tender friendship with Melody offers the kind of mystery and off-beat charm the original film had.

Returning founding member, Dan Aykroyd, is similarly fantastic. He’s more alive than ever, delivering his patented pitter-patter dialogue with gusto. Every scene of him, McKenna, and the slew of guest stars like Patton Oswalt, just talking about the unsolved mysteries of the universe is a pure delight. It’s a combination of whimsy, oddball seriousness, and love for the unknown that makes these moments shine. Personally, I would have loved to have an entire film of just this. Uniquely curious individuals who solve mysteries together in a way that’s just screwy enough to stand out.

The entire first half of the film is just that, and it’s enough to make Frozen Empire the best Ghostbusters film since the original. The second half isn’t as strong, but still delivers laughs and thrills to never truly stumble. If it did, this would easily be considered on par with the original. Now, it’s just a good sequel, and finally the kind of reboot that I can get behind.

I hope that Frozen Empire finds an audience, even with the lukewarm reception. There’s so much to love here that it would be a shame for it to amount to nothing. Finally, the franchise seems like it’s moving on from the nostalgia bait and allowing a new generation of characters to take over. Ernie Hudson is terrific as he ushers in the new cast, effortlessly charming his way from one expository scene to the next. His scenes with Aykroyd, where they muse about these being their golden years, are surprisingly touching, too.

If anything, Frozen Empire proves that Ghostbusters doesn’t need to cling to dated and toxic nostalgia. It has everything it needs right here. The winning cast is finally settling into their roles, and there are enough myths (real and imagined) to last another four decades. Let Aykroyd and Hudson visit and share their charisma when needed, but otherwise, we can move on.

That’s how these things are supposed to work, both with the living and the dead.