The New Ghostbusters - Part 6

[jmc]

Oh they're there for every film, game and movie. I never watched fan reactions on YouTube because as I pointed out earlier it's mostly the focused hatred of our internet age.

Well, I do watch a lot of reaction videos, and none of them were gearing any hatred, they just didn't like the trailer.

 

[JangoNate]

Well, I do watch a lot of reaction videos, and none of them were gearing any hatred, they just didn't like the trailer.

That's cool. I respect anyone who gives objective criticism. But the comments sections I read are mostly devoid of that and I can't take some of what I'm hearing seriously.

For the record, I wasn't blown away by the trailer. I just have a hard time understanding why some think it a train wreck.

 

[jmc]

That's cool. I respect anyone who gives objective criticism. But the comments sections I read are mostly devoid of that and I can't take some of what I'm hearing seriously.

For the record, I wasn't blown away by the trailer. I just have a hard time understanding why some think it a train wreck.

It's because Ghostbusters means a lot to a lot of people and if you screw something up that people love there's going to be a reaction.

 

[DigificWriter]

^ The problem with that line of thinking is that there's no actual evidence that they've "screwed up" the property.

 

[JtheDreamer]

^ The problem with that line of thinking is that there's no actual evidence that they've "screwed up" the property.

There is plenty - especially for the people who read about anything production-related or the sony email leaks. The trailer itself is subjective just like a movie.

 

[JangoNate]

It's because Ghostbusters means a lot to a lot of people and if you screw something up that people love there's going to be a reaction.

Definitely! But there are a lot of fans that don't want anything new. Leave them be! And so just the existence of this film will bring out disgust.

I hope Feig and company were ready for that. I don't think they were, though. I love the films. I have the pack prop and gear. My kids play with my original toys. We watch the first every Halloween and the second every New Year. I get it. I want this movie to do well, though, even if it isn't catered to me. I want others to have a door to this world. And the film won't make it with just the core Ghostbusters fans. Those of us considered hardcore, there's not as many of us out there some think. We need new blood and new blood responds to if fervent stuff.

Again, not the bestest trailer ever. I chuckled, as grinned, I friggin' loved the tech because that what drew me to the first film as a kid. But it has been very hard to see how this is the worst trailer ever or anything.

 

[JangoNate]

There is plenty - especially for the people who read about anything production-related or the sony email leaks. The trailer itself is subjective just like a movie.

I think the email leaks are a primary reason for the hate. I'm not familiar with the going ons behind the scenes of films,but I always assumed them not pretty. If we saw that type of stuff for other films we like it would probably leave a bad taste in our mouths.

Ivan Reitman said the other day that his job was to make sure that, though the film would be different, it didn't stray too far from what Ghostbusters is about. He thinks this film works and I'll trust that.

 

[Goshdarn Batman]

Also, SJW's are doing their most in reaction to this trailer. They spent months calling people bigots if they weren't interested in the movie ... And NOW they're calling the movie racist because of the African American character.

Never change, SJWs.

(Please note that I am not grouping all fans/interested parties of this movie with SJWs. Sad that I have to point that out, but I'm doing it. You're welcome.)

Wow...really? It must be a mental disorder or something.

By the way, I don't think it's appropriate to call them social justice "warriors". It's insulting towards real warriors. "Wimps" maybe. "Whiners"?

And yeah, sad that you have to point it out. Reminds me of the Fanfourstic whiners. "You're skeptical because you're a racist!"

And just in case the guy who always use the word bigot shows up: Shut the hell up (you don't know the meaning of the word). I'm no fan of other side either.

 

[JtheDreamer]

Dude! Calm down man and stop putting words in my mouth. I'm sorry I'm optimistic about the film and I'm sorry that bothers you. Never once did I say I was the end all be all decider of the GA. I just simply put down numbers from Facebook that showed a nuanced view of the trailer's reception. Continue to crusade on against this trailer.

I have no problems with you being optimistic. The issue I take is with how dismissive you are of concerns and the semantics you're playing to marginalize them. "Ohhhh it's just the nerds - because I talked to 100 people who all said it's fine."

 

[JtheDreamer]

Ivan Reitman said the other day that his job was to make sure that, though the film would be different, it didn't stray too far from what Ghostbusters is about. He thinks this film works and I'll trust that.

He's not going to tell us otherwise (unless his name was Christopher Tolkien). I mean what are you trying to sell me here?

 

[JangoNate]

I have no problems with you being optimistic. The issue I take is with how dismissive you are of concerns and the semantics you're playing to marginalize them. "Ohhhh it's just the nerds - because I talked to 100 people who all said it's fine."

If you had the opportunity to see all that I've written you would see that this isn't my objective. I'm a nerd, by the way. And the above is simply a personal attack and a reduction of what I wrote to something that best suits your argument. What you accuse me of saying.

We all really know nothing about how this will turn out. We are presented by numbers, backlash, and our personal experiences. Mine doesn't mesh with yours and that's fine. But this does not mean one is wrong. Your opinion and experience is a piece of the puzzle and so is mine.

Please continue to disagree with me. It's why we are here and it's what creates conversation. But there's no need to keep up the attack, friend. We're just really passionate fans with two points of view.

 

[JangoNate]

He's not going to tell us otherwise (unless his name was Christopher Tolkien). I mean what are you trying to sell me here?

This is kind of exciting! I've never really been singled out before.

Not trying to sell anything. Just sharing my thoughts.

 

[jmc]

^ The problem with that line of thinking is that there's no actual evidence that they've "screwed up" the property.

Like it or not, the trailer is enough evidence for people.

 

[jmc]

Definitely! But there are a lot of fans that don't want anything new. Leave them be! And so just the existence of this film will bring out disgust.

I hope Feig and company were ready for that. I don't think they were, though. I love the films. I have the pack prop and gear. My kids play with my original toys. We watch the first every Halloween and the second every New Year. I get it. I want this movie to do well, though, even if it isn't catered to me. I want others to have a door to this world. And the film won't make it with just the core Ghostbusters fans. Those of us considered hardcore, there's not as many of us out there some think. We need new blood and new blood responds to if fervent stuff.

Again, not the bestest trailer ever. I chuckled, as grinned, I friggin' loved the tech because that what drew me to the first film as a kid. But it has been very hard to see how this is the worst trailer ever or anything.

I have some experience in the advertising area so from a pure marketing perspective the biggest issue the trailer has is that it relied too heavily on words and imagery that reminded people of the original movie. Showing people exactly why they loved the first movie was the worst thing they could have done, because it brings up immediate comparisons and emotions. Worst of all, it wasn't very funny for most people. From a marketing perspective, this trailer was the Titanic.

 

[Majik1387]

I don't really see how people are having an issue with McCarthy's possession scene but totally accepted people turning into stone gargoyles then turning back human.

 

[JtheDreamer]

I don't really see how people are having an issue with McCarthy's possession scene but totally accepted people turning into stone gargoyles then turning back human.

Well the whole "that's gonna leave a mark" comment is boring standard fare. I think some people take issue with the almost stereotype-like behavior of Leslie Jones.

To me personally - her character came off a bit pandering.

 

[Nathan]

To me it felt just boring and by the numbers. And Jones' reaction during that scene made it just outright terrible.

 

[Goshdarn Batman]

To me it felt just boring and by the numbers. And Jones' reaction during that scene made it just outright terrible.

Seen it before. Crazy black woman, "ha...ha"

 

[Guts]

I don't have a problem with the idea of McCarthy's character being possessed, I just don't like the way it looks with her blank smiling face.

 

[JangoNate]

I have some experience in the advertising area so from a pure marketing perspective the biggest issue the trailer has is that it relied too heavily on words and imagery that reminded people of the original movie. Showing people exactly why they loved the first movie was the worst thing they could have done, because it brings up immediate comparisons and emotions. Worst of all, it wasn't very funny for most people. From a marketing perspective, this trailer was the Titanic.

That should have been left out. Confused a lot of folks. It seems it was in there because it tested well. Maybe for whoever the testers were, but for a fan community hoping for a connection it stings.

Feig should have gone more with his gut and told his new take and story in the trailer and leave fan nods for the film. From the commenter here on the boards who saw a screen test, this did not at all depict the film Feig put together and I'm sure that it was because they kept winking at the original.

He also said that Jones' character is much better in the film and not the impression most were left with from the trailer.

 

[jmc]

That should have been left out. Confused a lot of folks. It seems it was in there because it tested well. Maybe for whoever the testers were, but for a fan community hoping for a connection it stings.

Feig should have gone more with his gut and told his new take and story in the trailer and leave fan nods for the film. From the commenter here on the boards who saw a screen test, this did not at all depict the film Feig put together and I'm sure that it was because they kept winking at the original.

He also said that Jones' character is much better in the film and not the impression most were left with from the trailer.

The issue now is the damage has been done. I'm reluctant to say they should have seen this coming but the problem is this movie has done nothing to try and differentiate itself from the original other than it having a female cast. If they really wanted to do reboot Ghostbusters properly they should have started with something as simple as changing the logo and go from there. The more I think about it the more I'm convinced that this has been mishandled on multiple levels.

 

[JangoNate]

The issue now is the damage has been done. I'm reluctant to say they should have seen this coming but the problem is this movie has done nothing to try and differentiate itself from the original other than it having a female cast. If they really wanted to do reboot Ghostbusters properly they should have started with something as simple as changing the logo and go from there. The more I think about it the more I'm convinced that this has been mishandled on multiple levels.

But how much of it has been mishandled just by studio or marketing? Up front, I've liked Feig's films, though the Heat is weakest to me. I have no doubts he was doing his very best with this franchise, knowing the love people have for it. I wonder if there was a big push to show a connection (or rather lie about it) because of the hardcore fan outrage by the studio. I don't know. It could be a stinker of a film, but knowing Feig's track record I have a little more hope than that.

The trailer didn't deter me personally. I liked a lot of what I see and mainly because the tech was what always drew me to Ghostbusters. We've seen a trap, possibly a containment unit, the packs and Ecto (which I like a lot more after seeing it in motion) and so I'm really happy about that. New tech is icing on the cake. I like the look of the ghosts, too, and the practical effects used underneath that CGI. It could've been funnier. But I really think replacing all those nods and that ambiguous intro with more story or comedic moments would have made it much better.

 

[The Guard]

Has nothing to do with them being women or how they look. You're just looking for something that isn't there.

The poster said "The way they act" and referenced actual engineers they had worked with.

How is that me looking for something that isn't there?

McCarthy is acting like she always does. No range. Her character from Identity Thief could get put in this and nothing would be different.

And again, what bearing does this have on whether she is believable as a scientist, or in doing scientific things?

Can scientists suddenly not fit into the mold of the type of characters she has played? I've seen a TON of movies where scientists are a littlle bit bumbling, absentminded, etc. Heck, there were elements of that in the original GHOSTBUSTERS.

 

[The Guard]

To put YouTube comments in perspective, what we've learned is that, from nearly 10 million views, 1% of folks took the time to like it and 2% took the time to dislike it. They are the more passionate folks, I'd assume. This means the feelings of 93% of viewers is unknown.

This is what I've been saying, too. But wouldn't that be 97% we don't know about?

We can use numbers to prove anything that's even remotely true. But trying to use numbers that represent a miniscule portion of not only the general audience, but the actual people who have watched something...that's just silly.

From a marketing standpoint, Feig's previous movies' marketing campaigns, particularly movies like HEAT and SPY give me some hope because I didn't care for those trailers much and found them a bit broad and cheap, but as with most of Feig's movies, the actual movies are a lot funnier and cleverer (more clever?) than the trailers make them seem.

From a marketing standpoint, we can split hairs all day about whether they should have done this or that better, but film marketing, while an art in itself, is nontheless not designed to be or to showcase high art at every turn. It's designed to put butts in seats with the broadest appeal.

In that context, it couldn't be clearer to me that this trailer was designed to sell fans of these women on the fact that these women are in this type of movie. That's likely why you're getting very broad, simple, easy to digest jokes that are, not surprisingly, being labeled "typical McCarthy", "typical Wiig", and to some extent, "typical Leslie Jones". I don't think it's an accident that these are the clips we're seeing. Because the studio needs general audiences and fans of these women to make this film a hit, and general audiences have responded to these styles of comedy from these women in the past. These are the types of comedy people remember them for.

And shocker...just because some people didn't like the style of comedy on display...a lot of people did, and will. Many of them are casual Ghostbusters fans who won't care about the nuances of the franchise.

For what it's worth, and I don't care to use this to "prove" anything, but I'm seeing much of the media and social media embrace this. A lot of positive articles, etc.

I think the doomsaying is a bit much.

 

[jmc]

But how much of it has been mishandled just by studio or marketing? Up front, I've liked Feig's films, though the Heat is weakest to me. I have no doubts he was doing his very best with this franchise, knowing the love people have for it. I wonder if there was a big push to show a connection (or rather lie about it) because of the hardcore fan outrage by the studio. I don't know. It could be a stinker of a film, but knowing Feig's track record I have a little more hope than that.

The trailer didn't deter me personally. I liked a lot of what I see and mainly because the tech was what always drew me to Ghostbusters. We've seen a trap, possibly a containment unit, the packs and Ecto (which I like a lot more after seeing it in motion) and so I'm really happy about that. New tech is icing on the cake. I like the look of the ghosts, too, and the practical effects used underneath that CGI. It could've been funnier. But I really think replacing all those nods and that ambiguous intro with more story or comedic moments would have made it much better.

For this Ghostbusters to win people over it needed its own identity, and this trailer fails in every respect to do that, if anything it enhances the original movies. Creatively it might be one of the best films of the year, but as of now people don't care, all they are talking about is how Ghostbusters is ruined for them. This is a time when nostalgia backfire spectacularly. Tough times right now for Sony, I genuinely don't know how they go about fixing this.