In the run up to Ghostbusters coming out at the cinema, there was so much excitement amongst my friends and I. Snippets of film had been released on TV and as trailers with other films, showing the Marshmallow Man, Slimer, and all the Ghostbusters themselves. It was all we discussed in the playground.

I went to see it with 3 friends, at Bolton Octagon.

The first thing I remember about this film is Bill Murrays character, Peter Venkman, testing “psychic ability”, by administering electric shocks to a geeky looking man who is failing to guess the shapes on playing cards. There are two people being tested; a geek and a lady who Venkman fancies. Only the geek is getting shocked despite them both getting the cards wrong. Right from the offset, this TOTALLY defined Venkmans role in the team. He was the womanising joker.

Ray Stantz and Egon Spengler were the two other Ghostbusters that we were introduced to. Ray was the eager, blundering one and Egon was the scientific nerd.

The first ghost they encounter is the Library Ghost, a lonely spinster who had been roaming around the basement of the New York library, scaring librarians and throwing books.

Ray, Egon and Peter go on a visit to the library basement and attempt to investigate. They locate her, after much basement wandering and, in an attempt to communicate, Peter shuffles forward and asks her, “Where are you from…. originally?” She turns around, and… “shhh…”

A terrified Peter backs away and rejoins the group.

Ray has a plan. He sneaks around the corner, makes his way slowly towards the ghost, flanked by Peter and Egon and says, “1….2….3…. GET HER!” to which the ghost turns into a ragged old witch and replies, “AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!”” The Ghostbusters exit hastily, screaming!

They decide that they will make a go of this “catching ghosts” thing and set up a business in a disused fire station.

Their first call is to a hotel, to catch a green ghost who has been running amok on the 13th floor. After much tracking and a failed attempt to catch it, Peter ends up slimed. He lets Ray know via walkie talkie that “He slimed me,” to which Ray replies, “Thats GREAT!”

They track the ghost down to the ballroom and after causing far too much disruption firing streams from their proton packs, catch it.

On returning to base with “Slimer” in a trap, they recruit Winston Zeddemore.

A scared Dana Barret enters the Ghostbusters HQ, saying that she had seen a scary ghost-thing in her fridge. Peter, ever the womaniser, is eager to search her. Sorry, I mean search her house.

They find nothing unusual when the flat is searched, but Peter manages to wangle a date with Dana.

It becomes apparent that Danas appartment is a hub of supernatural and spiritual activity, after she is grabbed by her chair after hands shoot out of it, and dragged kicking and screaming into the ghostly kitchen.

Dana, and her neightbour Louis Tulley, become the Keymaster and Gatekeeper and converge on the top of the building, paving the way for Zuul, a ghostly God, to enter our world.

The Ghostbusters, after climbing floors and floors of stairs, eventually reach the top of the buildind too in preparation for the films huge finale.

Zuul gives the Ghostbusters the chance to choose the form of their destructor. Ray, in a moment of stupidity, tries to think of the least likely thing to kill them. He thinks of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Right on cue, a hundreds-of-feet tall Marshmallow Man stomps his way through the streets, making his way to the building.

The Ghostbusters realise that the only chance they have is not to kill the Marshmallow Man, but to try to reverse the gate that let him into their world. They all concentrate their proton streams at the gate and there is a HUGH explosion.

Everyone is covered in marshmallow, but otherwise unharmed. Much celebration ensues.

An amazing film that I never grow tired of watching and rewatching, and one that I recommend everyone watches at least once a week!