It’s not really a Ghostbusters movie unless it feels like Ghostbusters…. unless we get a sense of the same nostalgia we have for the first movie that came out 40 years ago. No offense to the girl’s version of Ghostbusters, it’s just Bridesmaids but as Ghostbusters. Som when Ghostbusters: Afterlife came out a few years ago, it felt like we truly got that third Ghostbusters movie we’ve been yearning for over 30 years. It was fun and it was heartwarming. It was a great nod to Harold Ramis who had passed away not too long before the movie came out.  It felt like Ghostbusters. Now we have a sequel, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire and while I won’t admit that it’s a great movie, the sense of nostalgia for a ghost whispers movie in New York splashes all over this film. That alone makes it worth seeing, especially when you got the whole gang back together again with Ernie Hudson, Dan Aykroyd, and Bill Murray. And this time we get to see Annie Potts suit up! But I have to admit that sadly not even nostalgia can make it a great Ghostbusters movie. While it’s great to have the whole game back in New York, this film feels more like Ghostbusters 2 compared to the original. An okay film for sure, but certainly not rooted in greatness like its predecessor.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not overly complaining about this film. It’s full of laughs and it has some heart but not as much as Ghostbusters Afterlife. What the film has going for it though is getting to be back in The Old Firehouse and getting to fight an ancient god who is out to destroy New York City. It’s nice to have the old cast back, but they take a back seat to the new Ghostbusters squad headed by Paul Rudd’s Mr. Grooberson from the previous movie along with Egon’s daughter and her children. They’re trying to bring back the Ghostbusters and crack down on spirits in New York City and they’re great together. But the one who really steals the show is McKenna Grace who plays Phoebe Spengler. And Paul Rudd can do no wrong. Let’s be honest, he’s a national treasure. He’s got great comedic timing and always seems to have the best lines. I feel like the purpose of this film is to bring the Ghostbusters back to New York where they belong and to expand the operations. You can clearly see in the story how Ghostbusters is going to become more than a few scientists capturing ghosts out of a firehouse. I’m all for that because a new generation has to take up the calling of being a Ghostbuster. But if I am being honest, this film goes more for the laughs than an overall story that matches the original film.

Maybe it’s how the film was edited, but you get a sense that a lot of the comedy is forced that they’re trying to make the evil god who’s freezing New York City to be more of a badass than he really is. And I hate to say it, we all love Bill Murray, but there are times it feels like he’s just kind of phoning it in. I’m not saying this is a bad movie. It’s a fun Ghostbusters movie for what it is, but nothing will ever be as good as the original and in some cases as good as Ghostbusters 2. The second one wasn’t a great movie, but it was a lot of fun and a proper sequel. My biggest complaint is the film feels like a two-hour epilogue to an entertaining Ghostbusters movie in Ghostbusters: Aftermath or maybe a 2-hour prologue to the next film setting up the future of Ghostbusters.

There just isn’t as much heart in this film and at times it feels like the older cast is just trying too hard to keep up. I’m glad that we finally got a third Ghostbusters movie and it worked, but in some ways, we didn’t really need this movie. However, if you’re going to make a proper Ghostbusters sequel then you have to take the story back to New York. And that’s what they do. This is very much a New York Ghostbusters story rooted in history and folklore with a lot of great nods to the first two movies. But nostalgia can only take you so far compared to actually writing a good story that doesn’t seem so family and unoriginal.

Overall Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is a fun movie with a lot of nostalgia and a lot of great laughs, but you go through the film feeling like there’s something missing or at least I did. You can’t force a movie to be a good movie. That’s the quality of the story. There’s a good story in this movie with a lot of potential but the bad guy doesn’t even seem that scary compared to, for example,  Gozer. What this film has going for it is a fantastic cast with some great comedic performances. But I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but it is time for the old Ghostbusters to retire… they serve as glorified cameos and that doesn’t help us move with the next generation of Ghostbusters. Also, not even having William Atherton as Mr. Peck come back can save the movie. It’s a forced cameo that doesn’t need to happen. However, there are enough Easter eggs and great nods to the original films that make Frozen Empire worth watching. It’ll never be a classic like the first Ghostbusters movie, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s a fun little story in the Ghostbusters universe that brilliantly connects two generations and really, that’s all we need. It doesn’t have to be great to be good enough. It’s a good enough film.  I still laughed and I will watch the movie again! More importantly, the Ghostbusters are back where they belong in New York City! Maybe we’ll get one more sequel with a better story, but for now, enjoy a Ghostbusters movie in New York City and that’s all we’ve wanted.