Ghostbusters is considered one of the first blockbusters and is credited with refining the term to effectively create a new genre that mixed comedy, science fiction, horror, and thrills. Ghostbusters also confirmed the merchandising success of Star Wars (1977) was not a fluke. A successful, recognizable brand could be used to launch spin-offs, helping establish a business model in the film industry that has since become the status quo. Once Ghostbusters' popularity was clear, the studio aggressively cultivated its profile, translating it into merchandising and other media such as television, extending its profitable lifetime long after the film had left theaters.[140]
Entertainment industry observers credit Ghostbusters and Saturday Night Live with reversing the negative perception of New York City in the early 1980s.[8][181] Weaver said: "I think it was a love letter to New York and New Yorkers ... the doorman saying, 'Someone brought a cougar to a party'—that's so New York. When we come down covered with marshmallow, and there are these crowds of New Yorkers of all types and descriptions cheering for us ... it was one of the most moving things I can remember".[69][71] It is similarly credited with helping diminish the divide between television and film actors. Talent agent Michael Ovitz said that before Ghostbusters, television actors were only considered for minor roles in film.[8][181] Describing Ghostbusters' enduring popularity, Reitman said "kids are all worried about death and... ghost-like things. By watching Ghostbusters, there's a sense that you can control this, that you can mitigate it somehow and it doesn't have to be that frightening. It became this movie that parents liked to bring their kids to—they could appreciate it on different levels but still watch it together".[15]
Cultural influence
Ghostbusters was considered a phenomenon and highly influential.[p] The Ghostbusters' theme song was a hit, and Halloween of 1984 was dominated by children dressed as the titular protagonists.[8][140][183] It had a significant effect on popular culture and is credited with inventing the special-effects driven comedy.[q] Its basic premise of a particular genre mixed with comedy, and a team combating an otherworldly threat has been replicated with varying degrees of success in films like Men in Black (1997), Evolution (2001), The Watch (2012), R.I.P.D. (2013), and Pixels (2015).[66][184][185] In 2015, the United States Library of Congress selected Ghostbusters for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Reitman responded: "It's an honor to know that a movie that begins with a ghost in a library now has a spot on the shelves of the Library of Congress".[186]
In 1984, the Ghostbusters phenomenon was referred to across dozens of advertisements for everything from airlines to dentistry and real estate. The "-busters" suffix became a common term used at both local and national stages, being applied to topics like the United States national budget ("budgetbusters"), agriculture ("cropbusters"), B-52s ("nukebusters"), sanitation ("litterbusters"), or Pan American Airlines ("pricebusters"). Similarly, the "no ghosts" logo was modified to protest political candidates like Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale to Mickey Mouse by striking Disney workers.[187] Other contributions to the cultural lexicon included "Who ya gonna call?" from Parker Jr's "Ghostbusters",[46] and Murray's adlib of "this chick is toast" against Gozer to imply she was finished or doomed over the scripted line of "I'm gonna turn this guy into toast". This is thought to be the first historic usage of "toast" as a slang term.[188]
Ghostbusters quickly developed a dedicated fan following that has continued to thrive in the years since.[143] Despite its mainstream success, it is considered an example of a cult blockbuster—a popular film with a dedicated fanbase.[63][189][190] It is popular globally, inspiring fan clubs, fan-made films,[191] art,[192] and conventions.[193] Fans dressed as Ghostbusters occasionally burst into the main reading room of the New York Public Library.[8] The 2016 crowdfunded documentary Ghostheads follows various fans of the series and details the effect it has had on their lives, interspersed with interviews from crew, including Aykroyd, Reitman, and Weaver.[194][195] A separate 2020 documentary, Cleanin' Up the Town: Remembering Ghostbusters, details the film production.[196] Memorabilia from the film is popular, with a screen-used proton pack selling for $169,000 at a 2012 auction.[197] In 2017, a newly discovered ankylosaur fossil was named Zuul crurivastator after Gozer's minion.[198][199]
Ghostbusters was turned into a special-effects laden stage show at Universal Studios Florida, which ran from 1990 to 1996, based mainly on the final battle with Gozer. The 2019 Halloween Horror Nights event at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Florida hosted a haunted maze attraction featuring locations, characters, and ghosts from the film.[200][182] The film has also been homaged or explicitly referred to across a variety of media including film,[r] television,[204] and video games.[205][206] Aykroyd reprised his Ghostbuster character for a cameo in Casper (1995),[201] and the celebratory parade at the film's denouement inspired the ending of the 2012 superhero film The Avengers, showing the world celebrating the eponymous team's victory.[207]
Critical reassessment
Ghostbusters's positive reception has lasted well beyond its release, and it is considered one of the most important comedy films ever made.[143][208] It is listed in the 2013 film reference book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.[209] On its 30th anniversary in 2014, The Hollywood Reporter's entertainment industry-voted ranking named it the seventy-seventh best film of all time.[210] That year, Time Out rated Ghostbusters five out of five, describing it as a "cavalcade of pure joy".[211] Empire's reader-voted list of the 100 Greatest Movies placed the film as number 68.[212] In 2014, Rolling Stone readers voted Ghostbusters the ninth-greatest film of the 1980s.[213] Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes offers a 95% approval rating from 79 critics, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The site's consensus reads: "An infectiously fun blend of special effects and comedy, with Bill Murray's hilarious deadpan performance leading a cast of great comic turns".[214] The film also has a score of 71 out of 100 on Metacritic based on eight critical reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[215]
In 2001, the American Film Institute ranked Ghostbusters number 28 on its 100 Years...100 Laughs list recognizing the best comedy films.[216] In 2009, National Review ranked Ghostbusters number 10 on its list of the 25 Best Conservative Movies of the Last 25 Years, noting the "regulation-happy" Environmental Protection Agency is portrayed as the villain and it is the private sector that saves the day.[217] In November 2015, the screenplay was listed number 14 on the Writers Guild of America's 101 Funniest Screenplays.[218] In 2017, the BBC polled 253 critics (118 female, 135 male) from across 52 countries on the funniest film made. Ghostbusters came ninety-fifth.[219]
Ghostbusters is considered one of the best films of the 1980s, appearing on several lists based on this metric, including: number two by Film.com,[220] number five by Time Out,[221] number six by ShortList,[222] number 15 by Complex,[223] number 31 by Empire,[224] and it appears on Filmsite's non-ranked list.[225] It also appeared on several media outlets' best comedy film lists—ranked number one by Entertainment Weekly,[226] number four by IGN,[227] number 10 by Empire,[228] number 25 by The Daily Telegraph,[229] and number 45 by Rotten Tomatoes,[230] which also listed the film number 71 on its list of 200 essential movies to watch.[231] Others have named it one of the best science-fiction films,[232] best science-fiction comedies,[233] and best summer blockbusters.[84][234] Murray's Peter Venkman appeared at number 44 on Empire's 2006 list of its "100 Greatest Movie Characters".[235]
