So how does Ghostbusters hold up for someone who not only hasn’t seen it but was also born six years after its original release? Apparently, really goddamn well.
Some interesting observations. For example, it’s not particularly topical which means that it holds up well over time.
I’ve watched I and II in the last few years, and the kids enjoyed them, but there are a few aspects of the movies that are of their era.
The most obvious is the title song.
The EPA is the foil of a number of jokes that would not be made today, because its just not respectful. They are the secondary enemy. The heroes are “junk scientists” that actually got it right and the EPA official is ridiculed as a mean-spirited stuffed shirt, though obviously smarter and better-dressed. Perhaps an era can be defined by the institutions it mocks, the linked piece doesn’t seem to get the joke about what programs a college might have. Jokes about the city streets employees.
Also, for us old timers its not hard to pick up the specific New York City context of the time. Watch Taxi-Driver, then Ghostbusters I and II, and the love letter to NYC becomes more obvious.