History Film / Ghostbusters1984

* InvisibleToNormals: People dining in the restaurant apparently can't see Vinz Clortho advancing on Louis; they just see some weird guy screaming with his back against the plate-glass windows and (being New Yorkers) ignore the obvious lunatic. During the "I Believe It's Magic" sequence, nobody on the streets seems to notice the lights gushing upwards from the explosion at the Ghostbusters' firehouse or the psychokinetic vortex above Dana's building.

A third movie had been stuck in DevelopmentHell for more than a decade. Aykroyd was gung-ho about the prospect and told anyone who'd listen that he had a script all ready to go; on the other hand, Murray was decidedly more skeptical after the ExecutiveMeddling on the second film. ''VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame'' (2009) was touted in some circles as a spiritual sequel, with so many [[RoleReprisal returning cast members]], being set in the same continuity as the movies, having been written by Aykroyd and Ramis, and being described as being the third movie by Murray.

Three parapsychology professors (earnest, forthright, and curious Dr. Raymond Stantz, sarcastic schemer Dr. Peter Venkman, and detached academic Dr. Egon Spengler) have finally succeeded in discovering proof that ghosts exisst! Unfortunately, as they return they discover that they have been fired from their positions at Columbia University in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity. Facing dire prospects in finding new collegiate employment, Venkman has a brainstorm: go professional. In their last investigation they devised a method of actually capturing and containing ghosts. They set up Ghostbusters, a company providing scientific exorcisms. At first business is slow, with cellist Dana Barrett as their sole client. As they begin researching her case, the number of ghosts in New York City increases exponentially.

The Ghostbusters soon become household names, and become so busy they recruit a fourth team member, NaiveNewcomer and [[TokenMinority token black guy]] Winston Zeddemore, but they realize that the surge in ghosts is portentous. Dana is abducted and possessed by the malevolent entities in her apartment. [[ObstructiveBureaucrat Petty bureaucrat]] Walter Peck shuts down the Ghostbusters' containment unit, releasing all the ghosts they had trapped and inadvertently unleashing Armageddon in the form of [[BigBad Gozer]], an ancient Sumerian deity. While waiting for a meeting with the mayor, Ray and Egon explain the phenomena are centered on the apartment of Peter's LoveInterest Dana Barrett (Creator/SigourneyWeaver), which was designed by a cult from the early 20th century to attract spirits and bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.

The Mayor decides to let the Ghostbusters try. Worst case scenario is they're wrong and nothing bad happens. Best case scenario is they're right and he becomes a hero for trusting them. The Ghostbusters climb to Dana's penthouse, take on the Ancient Sumerian Deity and win by breaking their own most serious rule.

Meanwhile, at the museum where Dana works, her boss becomes a [[TheRenfield Renfield]] for the ghost of [[BigBad Vigo the Carpathian]], an ancient tyrant [[SealedEvilInACan magically preserved in a painting]]. Vigo has Dana's infant son Oscar kidnapped, intending to [[GrandTheftMe take over the child's body]]. [[note]]As a side note, TheRenfield in question actually went on to play Renfield for real in Creator/MelBrooks' spoof ''Film/DraculaDeadAndLovingIt''.[[/note]]

A third movie had been stuck in DevelopmentHell for more than a decade. Aykroyd was gung-ho about the prospect and told anyone who'd listen that he had a script all ready to go; on the other hand, Murray was decidedly more skeptical after the ExecutiveMeddling on the second film. ''VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame'' (2009) was touted in some circles as a spiritual sequel, with so many [[RoleReprisal returning cast members]], being set in the same continuity as the movies and having been written by Aykroyd and Ramis. The prospect of a third movie with the original leads evaporated completely with Ramis' sudden death.

Ramis' unfortunate demise did not stop the movies leading to the formation of [[Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} a larger expanded universe]].

* AerithAndBob: To some degree. Our main characters include Winston, Peter, Ray, Louis, Dana, Janine... and Egon. While Egon is an actual name of Teutonic origin (meaning "formidable" or "mighty with a sword"), it sounds a little bit out of place surrounded by more common names.

* AnAsskickingChristmas

* BigBad: Vigo

* FlatEarthAtheist: The number of people in the movie who claim not to believe in the supernatural a mere five years after a prehistoric deity marched through downtown Manhattan is staggering.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: The psychic predicting the end of the world at the beginning of the movie.

* ThemeTuneCameo: Ray and Winston try to sing the GB theme song at a birthday party for "ungrateful yuppie larvae", but sadly, they're shouted down by their cries for [[Franchise/MastersOfTheUniverse He-Man]].

As publicity for the 2016 version, the first film was re-released in theaters with a BehindTheScene sneak peek of the new film.

As publicity for the 2016 version, the first film was re-released in theaters with a BehindTheScenes sneak peek of the new film.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Has several of these moments. Arguably the best known one was in the first movie there was that part when a woman is half asleep on her couch. Suddenly she hears strange sounds from the fridge and she says very blatantly, "Oh shit!"

* AmbiguousGender: Gozer appeared female when "she" first appeared, despite being referred to by male pronouns in texts used for research. The Keymaster ''did'' claim that Gozer could - and has - taken numerous forms in the past, so he/she could probably have looked like anything, male or female.
-->'''Winston Zeddemore:''' I thought Gozer was a man!
-->'''Dr. Egon Spengler:''' It's whatever it wants to be.
** [[TruthInTelevision Truth In Theology]]: Gozer, as a deity, would be a pure spirit, and thus not constrained to the mortal confines of gender and the limits of biology.
* AnalogyBackfire: Peter tries to tell Ray that being fired from the university isn't so bad, because "[[UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein Einstein]] did his greatest stuff while he was working as a patent clerk."
-->'''Ray:''' Do you know how much a patent clerk earns?!
-->'''Peter:''' No!
* ApocalypseHow: Attempted. But where do you slot the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man in the scale?
* ArbitrarySkepticism: Played with. While Peter is certainly a believer in the paranormal, he has a bit more practical sense than Ray and Egon, who are willing to believe ''anything'' is supernatural related. "Right, [[SarcasmMode no human being would]] ''[[SarcasmMode ever]]'' [[SarcasmMode stack books like this]]."

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: In-universe, the "roasted dog hair" crack Ray makes when they find the dog monsters, one of which was Dana, burned up. He immediately remembers this [[VerbalBackspace and quickly apologizes to Peter]].

The Ghostbusters soon become household names, and become so busy they recruit a fourth team member, NaiveNewcomer and [[TokenMinority token black guy]] Winston Zeddemore, but they realize that the surge in ghosts is portentous. Dana is abducted and possessed by the malevolent entities in her apartment. [[ObstructiveBureaucrat petty bureaucrat]] Walter Peck shuts down the Ghostbusters' containment unit, releasing all the ghosts they had trapped and inadvertently unleashing Armageddon in the form of [[BigBad Gozer]], an ancient Sumerian deity. While waiting for a meeting with the mayor, Ray and Egon explain the phenomena are centered on the apartment of Peter's LoveInterest Dana Barrett (Creator/SigourneyWeaver), which was designed by a cult from the early 20th century to attract spirits and bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.

** Justified in that Peck convinced everyone that the Stay Puft Man was a marketing ploy, and the explosion that closed the portal was the Ghostbusters misusing pyrotechnics, leaving them on the hook for all the damages caused by saving the world.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: The Ghostbusters [[SufficientlyAnalyzedMagic analyze and co-opt]] Viggo's evil mood slime by using a positively-charged version of the slime to animate the Statue of Liberty, which allows them to bypass the slime barrier surrounding the Manhattan Museum of Modern Art. The slime blowers are then key to incapacitating Janosz and [[spoiler:the possessed Ray]] without hurting them. When Vigo is forced back into the painting, the slime blowers are the only weapon that visibly hurt him.

* JustTrainWrong: Egon identifies the ghost train that runs over Winston in the subway tunnel as one that derailed in 1920, despite it looking much more like a train from fifty years before that.
* LargeHam: The judge, especially during his "'''BURNED AT THE STAKE!!!'''!" rant.

* InvisibleToNormals: People dining in the restaurant apparently can't see Vinz Clortho advancing on Louis; they just see some weird guy screaming with his back against the plate-glass windows and (being New Yorkers) ignore the obvious lunatic. During the "I Believe It's Magic" sequence, nobody on the streets seems to notice the lights gushing upwards from the Ghostbusters' firehouse or streaking across the sky.

* InvisibleToNormals: People dining in the restaurant apparently can't see Vinz Clortho advancing on Louis; they just see some weird guy screaming with his back against the plate-glass windows and (being New Yorkers) ignore the obvious lunatic. During the "I Believe It's Magic" sequence, nobody human - not even the team - seems to notice the lights gushing upwards from the Ghostbusters' firehouse or streaking across the sky.

* InvisibleToNormals: People dining in the restaurant apparently can't see Vinz Clortho advancing on Louis; they just see some weird guy screaming with his back against the plate-glass windows and (being New Yorkers) ignore the obvious lunatic.

* InvisibleToMuggles: People dining in the restaurant apparently can't see Vinz Clortho advancing on Louis; they just see some weird guy screaming with his back against the plate-glass windows and (being New Yorkers) ignore the obvious lunatic.

** Despite his attitude, Peck, as the head of environmental safety is entirely right to be concerned about people using dangerous, untested nuclear devices that could likely cause disasters if anything goes wrong. Points which the Ghostbusters themselves also have. It's when he shuts off the containment unit (despite being told by the ''designers'' of the machine, with great emphasis, that without power it will ''explode)'' that he really goes too far.
** The college administrator who tosses them off campus at the start of the film is an example as well. Pretty much everything he says is true, ''especially'' in regards to Venkman.

-->'''Dana:''' That's the bedroom … but nothing ever happened in there.
--> '''Peter:''' What a crime.

** $4800 was quite a hefty sum for an old beater that needed a lot of work back in 1984. It's the equivalent to about $11000 in 2015.

* {{Irony}}: Try as he might to attract the attention of a disinterested Dana, poor Louis Tully has no luck getting into her pants until ''both of them'' are possessed by evil transdimensional entities.

* GreaterScopeVillain: Ivo Shandor, worshipper of Gozer. Shandor was the architect for the building where Gozer himself/itself first enters our world, and led a cult dedicated to him. Of course, at this point Shandor himself has passed away by this point, but was significant enough to become an important mention while the Ghostbusters are locked up as the previously mentioned architect, since he was the one who had brought all the necessary elements for Gozer's return together while he was still alive. [[spoiler: Years later, when Shandor returns and releases Gozer only for the Sumerian god to come back in a weaker Stay Puft form (leading to his second defeat), the ghost of Shandor decides to [[AGodAmI become a god himself]] using an also-previously-established mandala spread throughout New York, as well as become [[TheManBehindTheMan the ghost behind the ghosts to most, if not all of the Ghostbusters's deadlier ghost enemies]] in [[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame the 2009 Ghostbusters game]]. Oh, and the name he chooses for his Destructor form like Gozer's (except minus the Stay Puft)? [[CallBack The Architect]].]]

--> '''Peter''': (holding a piece of bologna) You actually eat this?

*** [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] by Ray's childlike excitement; to him Ecto-1 is a CoolCar. He also mentions he has been literally working himself to exhaustion until they hire Winston.

* {{Understatement}}: Egon is prone to these. He says "bad" when what he means is "catstrophic".

* {{Understatement}}: Egon is prone to these. He says "bad" when what he means is "catstrophic".