Ghostbusters (1984) is a paranormal scifi comedy directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, and Sigourney Weaver.
The movie follows a group of scientists on their journey to become New York’s premiere paranormal exterminators. Three sequels, a reboot, multiple cartoons, and comics eventually followed. But beneath the comedic exterior of Ghostbusters lies a series informed by Dan Aykroyd’s personal fascination and family history with the paranormal.
These connections directly inspired the script of the original Ghostbusters. Aykroyd’s father was a paranormal researcher, and great-grandfather Dr. Samuel Augustus Aykroyd was a dentist and also a spiritualist. As Aykroyd tells it, Sam was approached one day by Walter Ashurst, who claimed to have psychic abilities, and went on to become the family’s trance medium. They held seances in the 20s and 30s. In interviews, Aykroyd often references his family’s supernatural history, as well as the Fox Sisters, who are considered the origin of spiritualism.
Ghostbusters (1984) remains compelling to me because of how rooted it is in that paranormal folklore and history. Later films moved away from the grounded influences (taking cues from The Real Ghostbusters), but the original two films are steeped in the uncanny, haunted architecture, thresholds, and the boundaries of reality either breaking down or being contained.
Haunted Architecture
- 550 Central Park West [GB84] – Otherwise known as The Shandor Building, this isn’t just an ordinary uptown highrise. As Ray and Egon explain while in jail to an assortment of loitering curious prisoners, the entire structure was designed by the architect Ivo Shandor, founder of the Cult of Gozer, explicitly to act as a conduit and open a portal between dimensions. As Egon describes, “The structure of the roof cap is exactly like the kind of telemetry tracker that NASA uses to identify dead pulsars in deep space.” It was built with “cold riveted girders with cores of pure selenium,” acting as a “superconductive antenna…pulling in and concentrating spiritual turbulence.”
Thresholds & Portals
- The Rooftop of 550 Central Park West [GB84] – This becomes a threshold between dimensions during the crossrip at the end of the film. The stairs leading up also act as a kind of threshold between the normal and the supernatural. The final crossing of the streams at the end does not destroy Gozer, but instead closes the “door” connecting our world and theirs, designed by Ivo Shandor.
- The Giant Portal [ATC] – Opens up at the intersection of ley lines crossing throughout New York City. The Ghostbusters realize they can use the reactors on top of their car to cause a “total protonic reversal” and turn the portal into a “giant ghost trap.”
- Stepping into the ionic separator [GBFE] – Phoebe steps into the ionic separator to temporarily become a ghost: “It’ll allow us to temporarily exist on the same dimensional plane,” she tells Melody, “My spirit will be separated from my body for only two minutes.”
The Generally Uncanny
- Ghostbusters (1984) – Zuul initially shows up in Dana Barrett’s refrigerator, eggs jump out of their carton and cook on her countertop, and her chair spawns arms. Two of the gargoyles found on top of 550 Central Park West turn into actual supernatural beasts (Vinz Clortho and Zuul).
- Ghostbusters II – At the beginning of the film, Dana Barrett’s stroller (holding Oscar) rolls away on its own. Later, Spengler notes a past documented incident: “Berlin, 1939. A flower cart took off by itself and rolled half a kilometer. Three hundred eyewitnesses.” Adding mood slime to a toaster, the Ghostbusters make it dance to music and respond to hostile emotions. In 1988, June O’brien’s allegedly possessed toaster made the news, so that may have been an inspiration (or a timely coincidence). Dana Barrett’s bathtub “comes to life” and tries to eat Oscar. Oscar’s stroller rolls into the street seemingly on its own. A painting houses the film’s villain.
- Ghostbusters: Afterlife – The ghost of Egon Spengler plays Chess with Phoebe. He also moves lamps to communicate with and guide Phoebe and Callie.
- Ghostbusters: Fallen Empire – While recording Repossessed, a woman presents her late husband’s allegedly haunted watch to Ray: “Well, any object that’s been exposed to a deep emotional experience can bind a spirit. An organic ghost trap, if you will. Stronger the experience, or even trauma, the more powerful the trap.” Ray checks it with his PKE meter, finding nothing. “I’m sorry ma’am,” he says, “but it seems that your deeply departed spirit has left this earthly dimension.”
- Psychics [GB84] – Amid the paranormal chaos, Janine claims to be “very psychic” and worries that Egon might die before it’s all over.
- Ghostbusters II:
- Telepathy – During the sign off of Venkman’s show, he points to his forehead and silently says goodbye (or something), mocking telepathic communication.
- Telekinesis – Venkman bemoans not booking the “telekinetic spoon bender” (likely referencing Uri Geller).
- Psychokinesis – Most of Ghostbusters II involves the idea of human intention or emotion influencing physical systems, in this case amplified by the mood slime. The slime found in a river beneath 1st Avenue is referred to as a psychoreactive substance or “psycho-magnatheric slime” that feeds off the emotional or psychic energy of the city.
- The Choice [GB84] – Gozer asks the Ghostbusters to choose the form of the Destructor. While Venkman warns everyone to clear their minds, Ray Stantz thinks of the most harmless thing he can: The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. The Stay Puft isn’t technically a thoughtform in the actual sense, but Gozer uses Ray’s thought to give itself form, playing out the ritual. You might ask why Stay Puft was chosen instead of Venkman’s J Edgar Hoover, and I have some thoughts.
- Egregores [GB89] – The Ghostbusters use the Statue of Liberty as a symbol of hope and good, turning it into basically a giant mech and using its power to break through the slime encasing the museum.
- The Titanic [GB89] – The Titanic belatedly docks at the New York City pier in ghost form: “Lieutenant, I think you better talk to this guy. It’s some dock supervisor down at pier 34. He says the Titanic just arrived.” It appears as a physical manifestation likely recreated by collective human memory (that’s speculation but I’m going with it).
- Paranormal Studies
- The first film opens with Peter Venkman (poorly) running an experiment involving Zener cards on two subjects, to study “the effect of negative reinforcement on ESP ability.” Zener cards are decks of 25 cards with symbols on them, originally created by Karl Zener in the 1930s to study extrasensory perception.
- In Ghostbusters II, Ray mentions “Duke University Mean Averaging Studies on Controlled Psychokinesis”while in his book store. Duke University did in fact conduct such studies in its Parapsychology Laboratory from 1930 to 1965. Statistical mean averaging was used to determine if human intention could affect the physical world.
- Tunguska Event [GB84] – At the very end of the film, Ray Stantz congratulates Louis Tully: “You know Mr. Tully, you are a most fortunate individual. You have been a participant in the biggest interdimensional crossrip since the Tunguska blast of 1909.”
- Philadelphia Mass Turbulence of 1947 [GB84] – While a fictional event, 1947 was the year of the Roswell, New Mexico Incident, and the Philadelphia Experiment allegedly occurred in 1943. Maybe a cross-inspiration, maybe not.
- Ectoplasm (ectoplasmic residue) – A physical slimy substance left by paranormal entities. In the real world, ectoplasm had the appearance of cheesecloth, while in Ghostbusters it’s more of a clear ooze.
- The Parade [ATC] – Parade balloon ghosts amble down the street. Patty says, “Yo, was Thanksgiving like Halloween back in the 1920s? ‘Cause that’s a creepy-ass Macy’s Parade.” Yeah, they were a bit like Halloween back then.
- Wax Cylinders [GBFE] – While at the Library, Dr. Hubert Wartzki digs out an old wax cylinder: “These are wax cylinders. Nineteenth century audio recordings. Our collection is bonkers!”
- The Finger [GBFE] – Phoebe finds what she believes is an old dried up carrot on one of Ray’s shelves. “Oh, that’s a human pinkie. Picked that up at the old state hospital for the criminally insane in Pennsylvania. Hauuuunted.” (Tangentially related but here’s a giant paranormal finger.)
- EVP [ATC] – During an end credits scene, Patty hears something on a tape recording that says “Zuul.”