I watched the previous movie in the new Ghostbusters franchise, and since I did enjoy it, I decided to go to the cinema to see the next one.

The initial opening scene, with a whole room of people frozen with apparently no obvious source, was a really good way of setting the tone of the rest of the movie and building tension.

I found Phoebe to be a really relatable character in the first movie, and that wasn’t any different in this movie. I can definitely relate to Phoebe needing the Ghostbusters in her life…and how frustrated and upset she was about having that taken away from her. Being told to just be a normal teenager, while the rest of the family continued to capture ghosts, was clearly really hard on her.

I will say that I was disappointed with how things were handled between Phoebe and Melody. If the characters had been a guy and a girl, there would have been a deeper exploration of their feelings and there would have been a Romeo and Juliet slant to the movie. For what it’s worth, I really don’t see Romeo and Juliet as some great love story. However, I know that comparison would have been drawn if the genders were different.

I did like the interactions between the whole family, including Gary, were really good. It was obvious that there were some tensions in the family with Gary dating Callie, including with Gary not really knowing if he could take an active part in dealing with Phoebe or not. I thought the tension between the family worked really well…although Phoebe snapping at her mother was a bit sad to see. On the other hand, I really didn’t like the fact that Callie told Trevor, ‘You’re an adult, aren’t you?’ when he asked her for help with the ghost in the attic. Like turning 18 magically means a parent shouldn’t help their child anymore? That made Callie drop a bit in my estimation, to be honest.

My favourite character in this movie, apart from Phoebe, had to be Nadeem. I always like the concept of a character who has abilities, but isn’t aware of them and then has to learn how to use those…and I really liked the way he was introduced. To be fair, the actor who plays him is one I’ve liked in a lot of things (like the Eternals).

On the whole, despite being disappointed in how Phoebe and Melody’s relationship was handled, I did enjoy this movie. It was a good sequel to Afterlife, and I particularly liked seeing the original surviving Ghostbusters appear in this movie. I will say that if you enjoyed the original Ghostbusters, I think this one and its predecessor are both worth watching.