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    ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Review: Something Weird, Multiplied

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    This overstuffed entry in the franchise is an eclectic, enjoyable barrage of nonsense.How many spirits can “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” fit in a firehouse? This overstuffed, erratically funny entry in the 40-year franchise crams in four main characters from the original 1984 blockbuster, six characters from the 2021 Oklahoma-set spinoff, “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” and introduces three new occultists along with an assortment of ghosts, poltergeists, horned phantoms and miniature marshmallow men. At one point, a dozen or so heroes amass at the old Ghostbusters headquarters in Manhattan to protect a storage trap of ghouls that has, like the movie itself, gotten perilously sardined. In the scenes where the director, Gil Kenan, who wrote the script with Jason Reitman, ponders what it might feel like to let the dead dematerialize for good, the film seems to be asking its fan base if it’s ready to release Bill Murray’s weary parapsychologist, Peter Venkman, from haunting the series when his soul clearly isn’t in it.“Afterlife” introduced the estranged daughter of Harold Ramis’s Egon Spengler, a single mother named Callie (Carrie Coon), and her teenage children, Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard). After the death of their paterfamilias, the family fended off his killer, the Sumerian deity Gozer, with a helpful boost from a high school physics teacher named Gary (Paul Rudd); two young pals, Lucky (Celeste O’Connor) and Podcast (Logan Kim) — yes, Podcast; and the first generation of Ghostbusters, Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd), Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson), Dr. Venkman (Murray) and the sassy secretary, Janine (Annie Potts).Now, the Oklahomies (even the unrelated children!) have relocated to Manhattan to speed around town harpooning wild ghosts from the Ectomobile, that beloved vintage hearse. In New York, the posse meets an ancient languages expert (Patton Oswalt), a paranormal engineer (James Acaster, a kooky English comic making his big-screen Hollywood debut) and an in-over-his-head huckster (Kumail Nanjiani) who inherits a nasty little spherical cryptogram with a very bad thing locked inside that’s yearning to unleash a fatal attack of the shivers — a neat idea that, in execution, just looks like a Roland Emmerich disaster movie.My fingers have taken to their death bed simply typing out the basics. Yet, “Frozen Empire” is an eclectic, enjoyable barrage of nonsense — a circus act that kicks off with a Robert Frost poem and climaxes with Ray Parker Jr.’s titular synth banger. Each scene gets laughs. Strung together, they sputter along with the fragmentary logic of a dream: Characters vanish at key moments and then reappear unexpectedly covered in goo. A demon goes to a vape shop. Once, I could swear the fire station’s brass pole was smelted down. A few beats later it was back in place. We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ Review: Splat

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      The latest installment in the Marvel franchise never takes flight despite its hard-working cast, led by Paul Rudd and a new villain played by Jonathan Majors.Busy, noisy and thoroughly uninspired, “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” is the latest, though doubtless not the last, installment in a Marvel franchise that took unsteady flight in 2015. Simply titled “Ant-Man,” that first movie was two hours of nonsense and branding, and disappointing enough to suggest that the character would be more farm-team material than A-lister. Given Marvel’s own superpowers, though, the movie turned out to be a hit, ensuring that the buggy guy would dart around for a while. Three years later, the agreeably buoyant sequel “Ant-Man and the Wasp” followed, and was an even greater success.“Quantumania” will most likely vacuum up yet more cash, partly because there’s not much else shiny and new in theaters now, never mind that this movie isn’t especially new or shiny. A hash of recycled ideas and schtick, it borrows from Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” the “Star Wars” cycle and Marvel’s own annals and largely serves as a launching pad for a new villain, Kang (Jonathan Majors). Once again, after some perfunctory table-setting, Ant-Man a.k.a. Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and his brainiac romantic partner, Hope Van Dyne a.k.a. the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), suit up, flying high and zipping low to save their family and the world amid quips, the usual obstacles and household drama. (Kathryn Newton plays the Ant kid.)Directed by Peyton Reed from Jeff Loveness’s barely-there script (the first movies each had multiple writers), “Quantumania” bops along innocuously at first, buoyed by the charm and professionalism of its performers and by your narrative expectations. Something is going to happen. After some jokey blather and reintroductions (hello again, Michael Douglas), it does, and once again Ant-Man et al. are sucked into the so-called Quantum Realm, a woo-woo alternative universe filled with swirls of color and looming threats. It’s there that Hope’s mother, Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer), as you’re laboriously reminded, spent many enigmatic years and where, after the some narrative delay, the mysteries of that adventure are revealed.The Realm features darkly ominous hues, fractal shapes, biomorphic organisms, streams of fire and strange beings, including Bill Murray, as a lord, who briefly drifts in on the vapors of his celebrity and flirts with Pfeiffer before drifting out to cash his paycheck. Murray notwithstanding, there are enough attractions to keep your eyes engaged, and the creature design is fairly witty. It isn’t pretty; the palette runs toward dun and dull red with slashes of marine blue. But it is diverting to see how movies realize alternative realities, and at least some of the C.G.I. wizards here — who do yeoman’s work in movies like “Quantumania” — seem to have spent time studying the deep-space images captured by the Hubble Telescope.As is too often the case in the franchise realm, far less attention has been paid to the story. None of what transpires is surprising, which puts the burden on the actors. Rudd is fine. A professional cutie-pie, he is a reliably anodyne presence, a human warm blanket. Good-looking but not dangerously so, he has easy charm and a signature crinkly smile that telegraphs that he isn’t worried, so you shouldn’t be, either. Mostly, he excels at playing a durable Hollywood type — the ordinary guy who proves extraordinary — a character that flatters half the audience and will never go out of style as long as men run Hollywood.Pfeiffer, Majors and Douglas (as Hope’s equally big-brained dad) are the truer stars of this show, and each brings something valuable to the mix. (Lilly’s character now feels like an afterthought.) For the most part, Majors strikes important poses while glowering imperiously. But he brings some complicated, wounded intensity to his role, and while his sotto-voce delivery sometimes edges into near-parodic Shakespearean overstatement, he effortlessly holds your attention, as do the sublimely chill Douglas and Pfeiffer. Douglas has even less to work with than Pfeiffer, who turns out to be the movie’s M.V.P., but they’re both wonderful to watch even when doing nothing much at all, which of course is its own kind of superpower.Ant-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaRated PG-13 for comic-book violence. Running time: 2 hours 5 minutes. In theaters. More

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      Bill Murray Speaks About Misconduct Allegations

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      “I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way,” he said in a television interview on Saturday.The actor Bill Murray said that a movie in which he was set to star was suspended because an attempt at humor had been taken amiss by a female co-star, addressing publicly for the first time an episode that has gotten widespread attention.“I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way,” Murray said in an interview on Saturday with CNBC’s Becky Quick, during coverage of Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholders’ meeting.Murray, who is 71, labeled the episode a “difference of opinion” and did not apologize. While limiting his discussion of what happened to generalities and without going into detail, he spoke contritely about unwittingly “insensitive” behavior.“I’ve been doing not much else but thinking about it for the last week or two,” he said. “The world’s different than it was when I was a little kid. What I always thought was funny as a little kid isn’t necessarily the same as what’s funny now.”The movie, “Being Mortal,” based on a 2014 book of the same title by the writer and surgeon Atul Gawande, is being made by Searchlight Pictures, which Murray said is conducting an investigation into the episode.Murray was the movie’s intended lead, and it was also to star Aziz Ansari, who had been directing it and who wrote the script. Seth Rogen and Keke Palmer had also been cast in the film.The episode involving Murray happened on April 15. Production was halted that day, someone working on the movie told The New York Times on the condition of anonymity, because details of the matter were being kept confidential.Murray did not name the female colleague who had objected to his behavior, but he said the two of them were in touch and that he felt optimistic about resolving the issue.“We like each other’s work, and we like each other, I think,” he said. “What would make me the happiest would be to put my boots on and for both of us to go back into work.”Searchlight sent the cast and crew a letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Times, that attributed the suspension of filming to a complaint but did not identify its nature or who made it. The person working on the movie said the cause was an allegation of “inappropriate behavior.”Murray is known for playing gruff but lovable characters in blockbuster comedies like “Caddyshack” and “Ghostbusters,” and he is a member of a troupe of actors associated with the director Wes Anderson, having been the lead in Anderson’s 2004 film, “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.”The suspension of the filming of “Being Mortal” has brought attention to past criticisms of Murray’s on-set behavior.The actress Lucy Liu has described Murray insulting her during the filming of “Charlie’s Angels” (2000), and the actor Richard Dreyfuss has said Murray threw an ashtray at him when they worked on “What About Bob?”(1991).In a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone, Anderson said Murray developed strong chemistry with a range of fellow actors.In the CNBC interview, Murray said, “If we can’t really get along and trust each other, there’s no point in going further working together.” But, he added, “I think that’s a sad puppy that can’t learn anymore. I don’t want to be that sad dog, and I have no intention of it.” More

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      Complaint About Bill Murray Halts Filming of ‘Being Mortal’

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      The suspension happened after an allegation of “inappropriate behavior’’ by the actor, a person involved with the production said.A complaint about “inappropriate behavior” by the actor Bill Murray has led Searchlight Pictures to suspend production of “Being Mortal,” a movie that was written and is being directed by Aziz Ansari, according to a person working on the production.Searchlight sent a letter on Wednesday to the cast and crew saying the suspension occurred because of a complaint but provided few further details.“Late last week, we were made aware of a complaint, and we immediately looked into it,” said the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The New York Times. “After reviewing the circumstances, it has been decided that production cannot continue at this time.”The letter did not provide any information on the nature of the complaint or who it involved, but the person working on the production, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the details of the matter are being kept confidential, said that the movie was shut down because of what was described only as “inappropriate behavior” by Murray.The episode that prompted the complaint took place on Friday and resulted in a shut down that day, the person said. The production spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday conducting an investigation, which resulted in the determination that work on the movie could not resume for the time being.The suspension was reported Thursday by Deadline. Disney, the company that owns Searchlight, and a lawyer who has represented Murray did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday evening.Murray, who is known for an understated, almost deadpan style, joined “Saturday Night Live” in 1977 and went on to star in comedies like “Caddyshack” and “Ghostbusters.” He has become an indie film fixture, appearing in several Wes Anderson movies and in Sofia Coppola’s “Lost in Translation.”Along the way he became a sort of rumpled cultural touchstone, with his visage depicted on art prints, T-shirts and prayer candles and inked as tattoos on the arms and legs of fans. He also surfaced in unexpected real-life moments: reading poetry to construction workers, joining a kickball game on Roosevelt Island and even photobombing a couple’s engagement picture shoot in South Carolina.It has been widely reported that while filming the 2000 movie “Charlie’s Angels,” Murray clashed with the actress Lucy Liu, who told The Los Angeles Times that he had started to “sort of hurl insults” at her, adding that “some of the language was inexcusable and unacceptable.”Murray is the lead in the Searchlight production, which also features Seth Rogen and Keke Palmer. It is based on “Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End,” a nonfiction book by Atul Gawande that includes accounts of his experiences as a doctor and exploration of how doctors and patients deal with terminal illness.Ansari is acting in the movie as well as directing it. He is also producing it along with Youree Henley.Production on the movie began in Los Angeles at the end of March and was to include a 30-day shoot. It is unclear whether Murray will remain in the movie or be replaced, said the person who is familiar with the production.“We are truly grateful to all of you for everything you’ve put into this project,” said the letter sent out by Searchlight. “Please know that we are working with Aziz and Youree in the days ahead to see if we are able to continue at the appropriate time.” More

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      Ivan Reitman, Director of ‘Ghostbusters,’ Is Dead at 75

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      The filmmaker injected giant marshmallow boogeymen and toga parties into popular culture with movies that included “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” “Stripes” and “Kindergarten Cop.”Ivan Reitman, a producer and director of a string of movies including “Ghostbusters” and “National Lampoon’s Animal House” that imprinted their antics on the funny bones of a generation of filmgoers, died on Saturday at his home in Montecito, Calif., The Associated Press reported. He was 75.His children, Jason Reitman, Catherine Reitman, and Caroline Reitman, confirmed the death in a statement to The A.P.During his decades-long career, with credits as recent as last year, Mr. Reitman produced and directed major box-office comedies that became iconic to the generations that grew up with them and contributed to the rise of actors like Bill Murray and Arnold Schwarzenegger, whom he cast in the unlikely role of a police officer masquerading as a kindergarten teacher in “Kindergarten Cop” (1990).He produced, with Matty Simmons, the 1978 movie “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” an hour-and-a-half-long depiction of Greek life’s chaotic energy and absurdity that has become one of the most beloved comedies in the history of the genre. The film injected the concept of the toga party into modern culture. After the staggering success of “Animal House,” he returned to directing, later telling The New York Times that he regretted not directing it.His 1984 film “Ghostbusters,” which he did direct, was nominated for two Oscars, despite lukewarm reviews from some critics, who complained of disjointed humor that heavily prioritized special effects.Viewers disagreed, enthralled and entertained by Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Mr. Murray clad in heavily accessorized jumpsuits and the bizarre visuals that included a 100-foot-high marshmallow dressed in a sailor suit and a neon green ghost. Five years later, he directed a sequel, “Ghostbusters II,” and he helped produce another spinoff, “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” that was directed by his son, Jason, and released last year.In a 2007 interview with the CBC, he recalled the first time he saw the stars of “Ghostbusters” in their outlandish ghostbusting outfits, rounding Madison Avenue for a pre-shoot. “There was just something so extraordinary about that image,” he said. “I turned to the script assistant next to me and said, ‘I think this movie’s gonna work.’”Ivan Reitman was born in Komarno, in what is now Slovakia, on Oct. 27, 1946, to Jewish parents who survived the Nazis. Four years later, his family fled Czechoslovakia to escape communism and eventually landed in Toronto.“We came here penniless,” he told the CBC in 2007 as he was about to get a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame. “I didn’t speak the language.”He began producing movies as a student at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.Working Off Broadway on “The National Lampoon Show,” he forged an early partnership with Mr. Ramis and with John Belushi and Mr. Murray before they became stars on “Saturday Night Live.”After “Animal House,” he directed “Meatballs” (1979), starring Mr. Murray as the head counselor at a chaotic summer camp, and “Stripes” (1981), in which Mr. Murray plays a rebellious Army recruit.Survivors include his children Jason, Catherine and Caroline.“Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life,” they told The A.P. “We take comfort that his work as a filmmaker brought laughter and happiness to countless others around the world. While we mourn privately, we hope those who knew him through his films will remember him always.” More