Ghostbusters (1984)
-
94% of critics liked it
(53 reviews) -
81% of users liked it
(949,269 ratings)
Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson star as a quartet of Manhattan-based "paranormal investigators". When their government grants run out, the former three go into business as The Ghostbusters, later hiring Hudson on. Armed with electronic paraphernalia, the team is… More Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson star as a quartet of Manhattan-based "paranormal investigators". When their government grants run out, the former three go into business as The Ghostbusters, later hiring Hudson on. Armed with electronic paraphernalia, the team is spectacularly successful, ridding The Big Apple of dozens of ghoulies, ghosties and long-legged beasties. Tight-lipped bureaucrat William Atherton regards the Ghostbusters as a bunch of charlatans, but is forced to eat his words when New York is besieged by an army of unfriendly spirits, conjured up by a long-dead Babylonian demon and "channelled" through beautiful cellist Sigourney Weaver and nerdish Rick Moranis. The climax is a glorious sendup of every Godzilla movie ever made-and we daresay it cost more than a year's worth of Japanese monster flicks combined. Who'd ever dream that the chubby, cheery Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man would turn out to be the most malevolent threat ever faced by New York City? When the script for Ghostbusters was forged by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, John Belushi was slated to play the Bill Murray role; Belushi's death in 1982 not only necessitated the hiring of Murray, but also an extensive rewrite. The most expensive comedy made up to 1984, Ghostbusters made money hand over fist, spawning not only a 1989 sequel but also two animated TV series (one of them partially based on an earlier live-action TV weekly, titled The Ghost Busters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Ivan Reitman
- Genres
- Action & Adventure, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Comedy
- In Theaters
- Jun 1, 1984 Wide
- Studio
- Columbia Pictures
Critic Reviews
-
Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine
Whoever thought of having evil's final manifestation take the form of a 100-ft. marshmallow deserves the rational mind's eternal gratitude.
-
, Variety
Only intermittently impressive.
-
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Essentially a $30 million version of Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy but not at all a bad time, thanks mainly to Bill Murray's incredibly dry line readings and director Ivan Reitman's maintenance of a moderately coherent tone and plotline.
-
, Time Out
The story of a trio of incompetent 'experts' in the paranormal (Murray, Aykroyd and Ramis), who set up as ghostbusters after they are canned from their college sinecures, is less cynical a construction than it sounds.
-
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
This movie is an exception to the general rule that big special effects can wreck a comedy.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Cast
-
Bill Murray
as Peter Venkman
-
Dan Aykroyd
as Raymond Stantz
-
Sigourney Weaver
as Dana Barrett
-
Harold Ramis
as Egon Spengler
-
Ernie Hudson
as Winston Zeddmore
-
Rick Moranis
as Louis Tully/The Key Master
-
Annie Potts
as Janine Melnitz
-
William Atherton
as Walter Peck
-
David Margulies
as Mayor
-
Steven Tash
as Student
-
Slavitza Jovan
as Gozer
-
Michael Ensign
as Hotel Manager
-
Alice Drummond
as Librarian
-
Timothy Carhart
as Violinist
-
Jordan Charney
as Dean Yeager
-
Joe Cirillo
as Police Captain
-
Patty Dworkin
as Woman at Party
-
Paddi Edwards
as Gozer (uncredited)
-
Joe Franklin
as Himself
-
Rhoda Gemignani
as Real Estate Woman
-
Roger Grimsby
as Himself
-
Stanley Grover
as Reporter
-
Kymberly Herrin
as Dream Ghost
-
Tommy Hollis
as Mayor's Aide
-
Reginald VelJohnson
as Jail Guard
-
Casey Kasem
as Himself
-
Jean Kasem
as Tall Woman at Party
-
Larry King
as Himself
-
Ric Mancini
as Cop at Apartment
-
Norman Matlock
as Fire Commissioner
-
Tom McDermott
as Archbishop
-
Eda Reiss Merin
as Louis' Neighbor
-
Jason Reitman
as Birthday party kid
-
John Ring
as Fire Commissioner
-
John Rothman
as Library Administrator
-
Murray Rubin
as Man at Elevator
-
Jennifer Runyon
as Jennifer
-
Danny Stone
as Coachman
-
James Hardie
as Reporter
-
Carol Henry
as Reporter
-
Sam Moses
as Hot Dog Vendor
-
Frances E. Nealy
as Chambermaid
-
Frantz Turner
as Reporter
-
Ruth Oliver
as Library Ghost
-
Larry Dilg
as Con Edison Man
-
Winston May
as Businessman Vendor
-
Christopher Wynkoop
as TV Reporter
-
Bill Couch
as Stunt Coordinator
-
Nancy Kelly
as Reporter








