Does swapping men for women really make that much of a
difference?
Of course not. This new Ghostbusters film is inferior to the
original, but having female leads is not inherently the problem. That comes
from a poor script, lack of characterisation and missing charm.
Or maybe tired female stereotypes telling puerile jokes is
your thing? Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy do their standard schtick as Erin and Abby, two scientists exploring the paranormal and dropping a fart joke
within the first fifteen minutes. Then there’s Kate McKinnon as the “quirky”
one and Leslie Jones as the token black character who amounts to little more
than sassy catchphrases. With such a great opportunity to write some interesting comic
characters, the lack of originality is disappointing.
Then again, the film does pay homage to the original. There are
plenty of cameos by actors from the 80s films, and instead of the giant
marshmallow man there’s a clever twist on the Ghostbusters logo. The plot
itself also follows a similar trajectory – it’s familiar yet just about
different enough.
If there’s one thing that gets these women more excited than
ghosts, though, it’s men. The mere sight of Chris Hemsworth and his bulging
muscles as dim receptionist Kevin is enough to make them go all googly-eyed. Cue
jokes about women lusting after men and men having little to offer except their
bodies. Maybe that’s a twist on the usual gender politics we see in the media,
but it doesn’t make for strong characterisation. If anything, Hemsworth steals
the film with his comic performance and glint in his eye.
Ultimately, though, this is a film that plays on its own
meta-narrative, a film about female hysteria and audience expectations. Just as
the public believe the women are frauds for chasing ghosts, most viewers will
be looking to pick holes in their performances. They do, of course, come out on
top in both narrative layers: the scientists save the day and these actresses
prove they are more than capable of holding up an entertaining enough summer action
blockbuster. It might not do much in the way of strong writing for women, but
perhaps seeing women taking the lead in such a high profile film is empowering enough.
2/5
Watch: Ghostbusters is
out now.
