Ghostbusters fans have a great month ahead of them, with the new film hitting theaters on July 15. The new film’s release is not the only event for Ghostbusters fans to eagerly anticipate as a Ghostbusters documentary film is set for release on the same day as the reboot, according to Gizmodo .
Check out additional designs for @GhostheadsMovie . Available on #Netflix starting July 15. #Ghostbusters #Ghostheads pic.twitter.com/EyUVzEfUTA
— ThatFilmStewPodcast (@thatfilmstew) July 12, 2016
The Ghostbusters documentary, Ghostheads , is set to be released on Netflix and was funded primarily through crowd-sourcing. Directed by Brendan Mertens, Ghostheads premiered earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival. The documentary not only discusses the history of Ghostbusters but dives into to the fandom that follows Ghostbusters . The film features Ghostbusters alumni Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson, and the directors of the old and new Ghostbusters films, Ivan Reitman and Paul Feig respectively.
Lee Leshen, the producer for Ghostheads , spoke on the coincidental release of the documentary alongside the reboot.
“We’d love people to go and see the reboot, and then, kick back with a nice frosty Ecto-Cooler and watch our movie at home so they can see how the film has impacted the lives of so many. Who knows? Maybe we’ll help some people find their own inner Ghosthead!”
Ivan Reitman believes that there are many reasons why Ghostbusters is still relevant to pop culture even 30 years after it came out, according to Rolling Stone magazine.
He believes that the chemistry of the original Ghostbusters cast worked so well together, and they were already individually talented actors. The most important thing about the original cast was that they were fun to watch. Ghostbusters twisted the horror genre with a comedic touch, and the film was essentially a ghost story that was dealt with humorously without sacrificing the scary nature of spiritual occurrences.
Despite it remaining a scary film, Ghostbusters worked remarkably well as a family film. The film gave kids a different way of seeing ghosts and spirits, generally being less frightening than what they may have already imagined. The film was one that managed to cross the generation gap as parents and their children could appreciate Ghostbusters on different levels but still be able to watch it together. Even Dan Aykroyd took his whole family to see the Ghostbusters remake just two days ago.
Happy to have the family see #ghostbusters pic.twitter.com/2jB9XJ4hIJ
— Dan Aykroyd (@dan_aykroyd) July 10, 2016
A perfect example of how Ghostbusters managed to blend horror and comedy can be seen in one of its most iconic moments; a scene that Ivan Reitman considers to be one of the most satisfying in his career. Ivan Reitman spoke about the Marshmallow Man sequence and how the audience received it during the very first screening of Ghostbusters .
“We hear big footsteps, so you know it’s something really big, and then we cut to that lovely first shot of this head bobbing behind a New York skyline and the audience just lost their minds the first time they saw it. It was one of the most satisfying moments I’ve had in my career… The story worked. We never had to reshoot anything.”
Ghostbusters Roast a Marshmallow Man in New TV Spots https://t.co/jdagoC28dj pic.twitter.com/UKxOVzhTzP
— MTL Geekery (@mtlgeekery) June 16, 2016
The reboot of the franchise has been receiving a lot of negativity leading up to its release, but Reitman defends the upcoming Ghostbusters film. According to Entertainment Weekly , Ivan Reitman encourages fans to wait and see the new Ghostbusters movie before passing judgment.
He spoke on the unfair reaction to the trailer that had been released for Ghostbusters , saying that it’s not that the trailer was bad per se, but that it would be almost impossible for a two-minute trailer to stand up to “more than 25 years of personal experience.”
“That’s why people have to see it. Word will be out quickly.”
Reitman believes that it is the die-hard fans of the original Ghostbusters movie that are to blame for the negativity surrounding the trailer for the Ghostbusters remake, and people are reacting too quickly to the trailer without giving the full movie a decent chance.
Watch the Ghostbusters trailer here.
[Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Invision for Sony/AP Images]