What’s a Ghostbusters movie supposed to look like? Some people are purists, and the only scenario they can imagine is the further adventures of Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Ernie Hudson. Spend a little time online checking on Ghostbusters fandom, which I don’t recommend, and you’ll hear variations of “I just want to see the originals back doing what they do best – busting ghosts!” There’s a problem with that, considering that Ramis is no longer confined to this plane of existence, while Murray, Aykroyd, and Hudson are too old to credibly be running around with proton... Read More

Ghostbusters shouldn’t have worked. To be sure, it’s become a beloved film, but it’s a beloved film almost in spite of itself. Dan Aykroyd’s original script was reportedly several hundred pages, involving pandimensional travel and bonkers science fiction concepts. Had it been shot, it would have cost over $200 million — in 1980s money. Ivan Reitman got involved next, convincing Aykroyd that a rewrite was necessary and that the script required a more grounded approach. The plan was for Aykroyd to star alongside John Belushi and Eddie Murphy, and as the director of Meatballs and Stripes,... Read More

I wonder if Stephen King likes being an institution, because he sure is one. The guy has been in the writing business for over 40 years, and he’s become a genre unto himself. You may be one of his Constant Readers, you may bemoan his influence on popular literature, or maybe you’ve just read a few of his books, but you regardless know who he is and what he’s about. Entire seconds worth of research shows me that, since 1976, there have been over 60 film and TV adaptations of his work. It goes without saying that they are of wildly different quality. Sure, you’ve got excellent... Read More