This reboot of the beloved 1984 comedy ticks a lot of the right boxes. It’s fun, spooky (a haunted house tour makes for an effective intro) and the ideal amount of silly. But above all else it proves the premature naysayers wrong. The cast, made up of Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones own every inch of the film as four women, each with their own quirks (the scientist, the inventor, the subway worker with an expert knowledge of the city), who team up after a pale madman (Neil Casey) unleashes malevolent paranormal entities upon New York. Better in its earlier half, the script fires out inspired one liners, extended riffs and the odd foray into physical comedy at alarming speed, most of which land with precision. It doesn’t quite have the capacity to endure, however, as the finale descends into the predictable all out mayhem scenario, with an overkill of CGI to top it off. But during the build up, when the team are acquainting themselves with spectre-killing weaponry and putting their differing characteristics to the best possible use, the film sings. And a lot of that comes down to the cast. No one performer outstrips the other, yet it’s hard not to tip the hat to Wiig’s masterful penchant for crazy, McKinnon’s facial reactions and Chris Hemsworth’s dim-witted receptionist. It may not have much in the way of depth or character progression where particular lessons are learned and heart-to-hearts are had, but it’s an absolute blast of zany fun nonetheless – one that’s easily digested and endlessly quotable.
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