Ghostbusters: Frozen Kingdom Unleashes a Cold, Unfocused Sequel

redmangoreviews

March 30

Sommerleigh Pollonais, Senior Writer

Plot: The Spengler family returns to the iconic New York City firehouse where the original Ghostbusters have taken ghostbusting to the next level. When the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must unite to protect their home and save the world from a second ice age

Review: Frozen Empire continues the story of the newest members to the Ghostbusters who viewers met in back in 2021's Ghostbusters: Afterlife. The Spengler clan are now living in the iconic firehouse headquarters, busting ghosts and doing city-wide damage much to the ire of former EPA agent-turned-mayor and still pain-in-the-behind Walter Peck (William Atherton, reprising his role from the 1984 original). The stakes are higher, the stage is larger and the O.G. cast is back in action. So why does this feel so hollow?

Wee woo wee woo wee woo

I didn't watch Afterlife when it came out and only sat down to view it in order to better follow Frozen Empire. Good thing too because if I hadn't, I wouldn't have been able to summon enough interest to care about these characters. Where that movie spent time making its new cast engaging, this one assumes you're already on board with the new gang, which wouldn't have been an issue if the writing made them more charismatic here. New characters like Nadeem (Kumail Nanjiani) and Dr. Hubert Wartzki (Patton Oswalt) do what they can to add humour and likeability to their roles, but it's hit and miss while the original cast look woefully bored.

It's not all bad though. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire looks great, even when it's retreading old ground. Scenes with Slimer or a ghost than can possess inanimate objects running wild through the city were energetic. I also thought the new big bad, an ancient deity that causes everything around him to freeze due to pure fear, was a visually interesting replacement for Gozer (although, not as fun).

Oooh. Spooky

Frozen Empire suffers the same problem most big budget sequels do. It throws too much at the screen and ultimately offers nothing interesting or fun for viewers to watch. What made Afterlife better for me is it was more focused on character development and had a focused storyline. While it was great to see the Ghostbusters back in the city that was basically an added team member, too many plotlines made for an unfocused movie that swings and misses at the heart of what makes this franchise as beloved as it is.

Sommer's Score: 5.5 out of 10

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Sommerleigh of the House Pollonais. First of Her Name. Sushi Lover, Queen of Horror Movies, Comic Books and Binge-Watching Netflix. Mother of two beautiful black cats named Vader and Kylo. I think eating Popcorn at the movies should be mandatory, PS4 makes the best games ever, and I'll be talking about movies until the zombie apocalypse comes. Double Tap Baby! Read More