‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ registers ‘unique, impressive’ opening – analyst

MANILA, Philippines — "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" scared its way to the top of the North American box office, taking in an estimated $45.2 million (about P2.5 trillion) in what one analyst called a "unique and impressive opening” at the end of last month.

"Only four other comedic series in the last 27 years have lasted five episodes," analyst David Gross told Agence France-Presse, with ticket sales for the latest entry in Sony's comedy series coming in "well above average for the genre."

Still, with a $100 million (around P5.6 trillion) budget, "Frozen Empire" has a way to go to reach profitability.

As of today, April 15, "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" is at the third spot of the North American box office with $5.8 million (about P329 million) this week. At the top of the box office this week is "Civil War," followed by "Godzilla x Kong.”

Co-written by Jason Reitman, whose father Ivan Reitman directed the original "Ghostbusters" in 1984, the film teams a new cadre of ghost catchers (Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon) with the veterans (Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson) as they take on a frightening deity trying to launch a new Ice Age.

"Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" feels a lot bigger, said Mckenna Grace, who plays Phoebe Spengler in the movie. 

“It’s in New York, it brings us back to where the Ghostbusters originated so that’s really special,” said Grace in a statement sent to Philstar.com. “New villain, new storylines, new problems that at least Phoebe has never encountered. It’s bigger scale, more blockbuster, action, there’s a lot. It’s very fun.”

In "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire," the Spengler family returns to where it all started – the iconic New York City firehouse – to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who’ve developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age. Besides Grace, the film also stars Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, Celeste O’Connor, Logan Kim and original Ghostbusters Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and Annie Potts.

For Wolfhard, who plays Phoebe’s older brother Trevor, one of the most fun things to look forward to is seeing the new Ghostbusters work with the "OG" (original) Ghostbusters.

“This movie is incredibly fun because you have the original Ghostbusters teaming up with the new Ghostbusters,” stated Wolfhard. “It’s hard to believe that we’re all in the same room together, working on the same scenes. It’s very surreal but super rewarding.” 

"Frozen Empire’s" big bad is a ghost named Garraka, who can literally freeze people to death. “I think that Garaka is a very frightening, frightening villain,” said Grace. 

Garraka’s deadly power is not the only thing our heroes have to worry about. There are more ghosts to face off… much, much more. “It’s pretty intense when every single ghost that the Ghostbusters have captured are all going to be released and wreak havoc on New York City,” said Grace. “And there’s a massive, giant crazy demon god trying to take over the world and kill everybody with ice. It’s a little bit frightening and a little bit intense.”

Thankfully, the Ghostbusters franchise is known for mixing scares with comedy very well. “There’s a lot of scary moments, but it always has a levity to it because of all the comedy, which the first one did expertly well,” said Wolfhard. “Gil [Kenan, director] and Jason [Reitman, writer/producer] have tried to inject that kind of DNA into these films."

Grace, Wolfhard and the rest of the cast are fans of the original films, and of course, the original Ghostbusters. “Being a part of an incredible legacy is a big honor,” said Wolfhard. 

“It’s for the fans made by fans, so there’s a lot of love,” added Grace. 

"Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" is distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International, and is now showing in cinemas nationwide. — With reports from Agence France-Presse