Review: Who you gonna call? ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’

There’s something strange in the neighborhood — again — in “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.”

Picking up where “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” left off three years ago, “Frozen Empire” is also like “Afterlife” in that it has way too much going on as it attempts to juggle two movies’ worth of actors.

There’s the return of (most of) the original ghostbusters, in the game form of Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Burnsville’s leading actor, Ernie Hudson — and, surprisingly, Murray makes the least impact of the trio, with Aykroyd and Hudson generating tender feelings in a scene that has nothing to do with ghosts.

There’s a blended family (Carrie Coon and Paul Rudd as the parents, Finn Wolfhard and Mckenna Grace as their teenagers) that has picked up their family’s history of not being afraid of no ghosts.

There’s a doomed romance between Grace and a Billie Eilish-like spirit she encounters. There are a couple of additional ghostbusting randos (Celeste O’Connor, James Acaster), whose presence feels superfluous. There are lesser original characters (Annie Potts, William Atherton) with little to do. There’s an impressively designed new villain, an ice-spewing monster that looks like something out of a Guillermo del Toro movie. There’s wise-cracking Kumail Nanjiani as a huckster with some connection to the spirit world. And there are mini versions of the original’s Stay Puft Marshmallow monster, who function like the Minions of “Despicable Me” and are destined to be merch.

“Frozen Empire” wastes time trying to find stuff for all of those people to do, which makes it feel herky-jerky. There’s a plot of sorts, involving monsters trying to freeze Manhattan and the family’s efforts to fulfill its legacy while remaining a team, but it’s more a collection of incidents than a movie with a beginning, middle and end.

Still, individual parts of the movie are entertaining. Coon and Rudd are terrific together. Nanjiani’s insecure-person-attempting-to-pull-off-braggadocio energy is hilarious. Aykroyd supplies an undertone of sweet nostalgia (when in doubt, director Gil Kenan cuts to Aykroyd, being delighted by his co-stars blowing away a demon).

The script won’t bust any guts but it is consistently amusing. And, although I get that no one is going to a “Ghostbusters” movie in search of beautiful images, cinematographer Eric Steelberg pulls off some gorgeous compositions, including one of Coney Island’s Wonder Wheel attraction, with the Atlantic glimmering in the background. These special effects comedies often appear ugly — grainy and dark, to help the effects pop, I guess — but “Frozen Empire” is a looker.

The movie is dedicated to Ivan Reitman, director of the first two movies (and father of Jason) and, more than any of the subsequent movies, it feels like it’s in the playful spirit of the original. It’s tough to balance the casual vibe required for comedy to work with the effortfulness of huge special effects, but “Frozen Empire” pulls it off.

Some fans may miss the actors who didn’t return for this one but the ending certainly leaves open the possibility that busting will continue to make this crew feel good.

**1/2 out of 4 stars

Rated: PG-13 for violence and language.

Where: In theaters.