Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Review – Who Wants Ice Cream?

The ghosts are chilly in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the latest entry in the Ghostbusters franchise. Gil Kenan (Monster House) directed and co-wrote the film, with Jason Reitman (Ghostbusters: Afterlife) being the other co-writer. The sequel to 2021’s Afterlife, Frozen Empire follows the Spengler family as they attempt to restart the Ghostbusters business in New York City. It stars Carrie Coon (Gone Girl), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Mckenna Grace (Gifted), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), and Kumail Nanjiani (Eternals), as well as the returning legacy Ghostbusters Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and Bill Murray. 

The Ghostbusters seem to have their work cut out for them when Nadeem (Nanjiani) sells Ray (Aykroyd) an immensely powerful orb that happens to contain an ancient evil spirit named Garraka. It has the power to unleash a wave of cold called the Death Chill that wipes out all life. Lucky it’s contained in the orb right? This is just one of many examples of Frozen Empire being a tad predictable. Foreshadowing is used with a heavy hand to set things up. It makes the story easy to follow but you won’t be surprised much. 

Ghostbusters 2, erm… 2?

Frozen Empire’s story is solid, and not as convoluted as it could have been considering there are a dozen Ghostbusters on the team this time around. While it can be predictable, there’s still one or two things that I didn’t see coming, that I won’t spoil here. The story mostly bounces back and forth between three different plots that are all character-driven. The strongest storyline is the familial one that’s continued from Afterlife. After Phoebe is banned by the (returning) mayor, the Spenglers attempt to keep her from doing any busting. 

Feeling isolated, Phoebe lashes out resulting in some great back and forth between Coon and Rudd. This leads to Phoebe’s storyline where she meets – and sort of dates – a teenage ghost named Melody (Emily Alyn Lind). It acts as a sort of sassier version of Casper and pays off by the movie’s end. It also serves to keep the first half of Frozen Empire interesting, because the plot comes to a head fairly slowly. All in all, it’s probably the best storyline, giving the film its heart, which is somewhat ironic, considering Melody’s a spirit. 

The Death Chill part of the story is handled well but is a little rushed toward the end. Characters are forgiven and situations are fixed way too quickly. While that’s a shame, it’s not too much of an issue because the Death Chill is consistently visually interesting. Most of the visual effects are handled well and add to the overall spectacle of Frozen Empire. Both the new and the old ghosts look great, with the mini Stay Puft Marshmallows looking cuter and acting dumber than ever.

It’s All About Family

The legacy characters all fit in well with the story, appearing and reappearing quite naturally. Yes, they’re usually accompanied by the Ghostbusters theme, but there’s a certain amount of nostalgia we should be willing to allow. However, there are way too many characters in Frozen Empire. And yet, most of the characters feel authentic, even though some are just onscreen for a group shot or comedic beat. Celeste O’Connor’s (Madame Web) Lucky and Wolfhard’s Trevor both felt sidelined, which is a shame. Comedian James Acaster’s character Lars quite literally just pops back up at one point.

The Spengler family feels like a real family unit, like they did in Afterlife. Some of the characters do come across as artificial, which has been a problem throughout the entire franchise. The legacy characters – particularly Ray – lean into retirement and golden years discussions that feel genuinely self-reflective. The best part of the film is that it managed to be – despite balancing two casts – a fun and entertaining movie. The dialogue can be a little bit awkward at moments, but it’s by no means bad, just a little cringeworthy. 

The jokes are delivered perfectly, with Rudd and Murray standing out. Most of the jokes made me chuckle but a few managed to get some big laughs. All the performances aren’t fantastic, but the actors do a great job of making their characters feel distinct. While it is a family-friendly comedy, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire doesn’t hold back on the horrific side of Ghostbusting. Some of the horror scenes are more impactful than most of the horror films released in the last year. The abilities of the ghosts are used brilliantly in both spooky and entertaining ways.

Building the Frozen Empire

Dario Marianelli’s (Pride & Prejudice) score is great and adds to the horror and childlike wonder of the film. It also mixes in with the original Ghostbusters themes well. The film’s atmosphere does wander into scary territory, but for the most part, it’s clear that it’s trying to be fun. The score complements that sentiment perfectly. The sound design is also brilliant in a couple of the scarier scenes. 

While the movie isn’t too long – clocking in at 115 minutes – it does feel long. Because the plot moves from storyline to storyline, it manages to stay fresh at the same time. But, it only feels like it’s longer than two hours because of the amount of storylines and characters. Cutting them down definitely would have helped, but it also might’ve made it empty instead. Everyone would rather a longer film than one without anything to say. 

Frozen Empire feels like a Ghostbusters movie that could have used a structural rewrite, but it still manages to capture your attention by being entertaining and an unabashedly fun film. If you’re looking for a family outing and like fun adventure films, you should go to the theater for this one. But, maybe don’t bring young children. On the other hand, if you think a storyline involving a teenage romance is going to bore you, you can wait to catch this one when you can watch it at home. You can watch Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire in theaters now.