Rated: PG
Running time: 101 mins
The special effects blockbuster has just evolved - evolved back into primordial sludge.
When Ivan "Ghostbusters" Reitman announced his new film would be along the lines of his previous, highly acclaimed and highly successful paranormal comedy the movie going public sat up and took interest. Anything, even the prospect of going over old ground, was something to look forward to after the guff that was Father's Day and Junior.
If only.
Reitman has taken several... ok, all of the key elements from Ghostbusters and reworked them with a clever modern slant - aliens. If this doesn't get you going then you're just out of touch.
Featuring David Duchovny, Julianne Moore and Orlando Jones in the role of Alienbusters makes for an uneasy mix of talent and celebrity. It's a recipe which carries itself through the entire film, always stopping short of the audience ever actually liking the characters. The heavy handed build up of chemistry between Duchovny and Moore doesn't help things either.
Before we get too deep into the sludge of negativity here let's just say that there are some genuinely funny moments. When Reitman moves away from Duchovny parodying his Mulder character, the film's character breaks through for one good scene featuring a chase sequence.
But enough of that. Back to the negativity.
It's a film which, if allowed to create its own direction and step out of the way too big shoes of Bill Murray's comic excellence, could have aspired to being Men In Black. On a good day. Even taken without the heritage of Ghostbusters it fails to make it in terms of pacing or plot development. It's all just a little too contrived and the neat ideas (and there are some) stop breathing pretty quickly.
The entire film seems to have been sacrificed for the sake of it's direct-by-numbers success. The characters are restrained, the effects are predictable and the ending, well the ending disappoints most of all as it surrenders whole heartedly to commercialism in the worst possible way. Suffice to say, Paul Verhoeven's ability to knock the concept of product placement is under no threat.
Evolution should hopefully turn into Extinction anytime soon.
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