Bustin Makes Me Feel Good

"I think he can hear you Ray."

Sexism and misappropriation of occult religious symbols aside, Ghostbusters has to be, hands down one of my favorite New York movies of the 80s. I watched it twice last week, once for Halloween and the second time just to watch it again with my sweetie. Lets not talk about the incredible cinematography, or the wonderful use of familiar local NY City neighborhoods, high rises, isolation, politics, horror and haunted spaces. Lets not even talk about the amazing score! I could listen to the Ghostbusters score without even watching the movie. Lets not talk about the strange joy of watching the city get trampled by a giant Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. That special effect still wows me every single time. I'm like a kid again.

The thing that I loved then as now in addition to all those things and more was Bill Murray and the way that all his wierdassness fit into this movie like a glove. All of his oddities of his usual comic performance took off like a rocket with Ivan Reitmans direction.  We could see this begin to emerge with Reitman in "Stripes" (1981) another film I enjoy but in "Ghostbusters" Murray's formidable power is at it's highest. You almost feel as if Reitman gave Murray free reign to do whatever he wanted. Watching Murray in this film even now, feels like new. Nothing about it feels dated or imitative because no one else is like Murray. No one else takes these chances with dialogue, comic timing, meter and arbitrary self reference. From the very beginning, you're on his side. There's something wrong with him and you don't know what but you sympathize. His cynicism, overconfidence, selfishness, sentimentality and dare I say romantic idealism/read sexism are a strange mix in the character of Peter Venkman, but somehow Murray makes it work in a way I can't imagine any other actor doing. For me, I don't think any other vehicle came along for him that worked as well until "Rushmore"
in 1998.

 For me, Murray is not as great a straight dramatic actor as he believes himself. He is Bill Murray. He has never strayed from his Bill Murrayness in any successful way that I'm aware of. I cringe when I think of his portrayal in a 1984 version of "The Razor's Edge", a film whose second remake in 1946 is among my favorite films. Murray was awful in it. Just miscast and terrible. And I don't care how people rave over "Lost in Translation." His performance in Coppola's Japan wack off fest was fine but nothing close to his performance in "Rushmore" where his poker face, flat delivery, unique comic timing had re-emerged as something which had become more refreshing, more evocative and more pleasurable to watch.