Overview
When the paranormal becomes a business, who you gonna call?
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- irreverent
- breezy
- spooky season
- family movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film's deadpan performances, quotable dialogue, sustained comic pacing, and effective blend of special-effects spectacle with character-driven humor, while finding the apocalyptic finale less controlled than the earlier ghost-catching episodes.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Peter Venkman and his colleagues respond to ghosts, government interference, and world-ending danger through dry banter and pragmatic business behavior.
The expelled university researchers establish a paid ghost-removal service before becoming the city's unlikely defenders.
The converted New York firehouse functions as the Ghostbusters' laboratory, office, and fantasy-adventure base.
The film's ghosts, slime, giant apparition, and apocalyptic climax are structured around the comic timing of its actors.
Films like Ghostbusters, and why
Beetlejuice
Shares supernatural comedy, eccentric professionals, inventive special effects, and an irreverent ensemble tone.
Men in Black
Shares paranormal spectacle, comic genre blending, deadpan humor, and a team confronting an otherworldly threat.
The Mask
Shares high-concept fantasy comedy, buddy chemistry, urban adventure, and playful monster effects.
Movie Details
- Director
- Ivan Reitman
- Release Date
- 1984-06-08
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (10023)
Cast
- Bill Murray
- Dan Aykroyd
- Harold Ramis
- Sigourney Weaver
- Rick Moranis
- Ernie Hudson
- Annie Potts
- William Atherton
- David Margulies
- Slavitza Jovan
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, YouTube TV, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Ghostbusters about?
- Three expelled parapsychologists turn ghost hunting into a scrappy New York business before an ancient supernatural force threatens the entire city.
- What is Ghostbusters like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Ghostbusters as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Ghostbusters violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Ghostbusters as mild.
- What did critics think of Ghostbusters?
- Critics broadly praised the film's deadpan performances, quotable dialogue, sustained comic pacing, and effective blend of special-effects spectacle with character-driven humor, while finding the apocalyptic finale less controlled than the earlier ghost-catching episodes.
- Which films are like Ghostbusters?
- Films with a similar feel include Beetlejuice, Men in Black, and The Mask.
- How long is Ghostbusters?
- Ghostbusters runs 105 minutes.
- Where can I watch Ghostbusters?
- In United States, Ghostbusters streams on Netflix, YouTube TV, Netflix Standard with Ads.
