Synopsis of Movie

“Suck in the guts guys, we're the Ghostbusters.”

When a 16th-century tyrant and a river of angry pink ooze threaten New York City, who ya gonna call? (It’s a rhetorical question.) Ghostbusters II brought back Drs. Venkman, Stantz, Spengler and the rest, but life hadn’t been kind in the five years—both in real time and movie time—since the original Ghostbusters film.

At the start of Ghostbusters II, the Ghostbusters have been banned from all spirit chasing by a court order. Ray and Winston are working kids’ birthday parties, Egon is conducting experiments on the human psyche and the environment, and Peter is hosting “The World of the Psychic” on local cable. Cool beauty Dana broke up with Peter, married another man, had a baby named Oscar, got divorced and is now working as a museum art restorer.

That’s where things first start to get nasty, as Dana begins restoring a portrait of the malevolent Vigo the Carpathian. Vigo wants to return to this world to reign in terror, but he needs a host form to make the jump. He finds one in little baby Oscar, and with the help of Dana’s boss Janosz Poha, the Carpathian begins making his move.

Peter and the boys reunite to help Dana out, but they’re soon placed under arrest for violating their court order, and hapless Louis Tully is their only legal representation. Together again, the Ghostbusters realize that New York is on course for another supernatural meltdown, courtesy of a river of oozing pink ectoplasm beneath the city streets. The slimy goo is fueled by the collective rage of New York’s notoriously hard-nosed citizens, and unless Peter and the gang can harness a little love power, Vigo and his minions will usher in a global apocalypse.

All the elements that made the original Ghostbusters such a success were back—Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudon, Annie Potts and other supporting players acting in another Aykroyd/Ramis script directed by Ivan Reitman. The soundtrack was another R&B-influenced hit, with Bobby Brown’s single “On Our Own” hitting #2 on the U.S. charts.

The mix worked again, as Ghostbusters II scored another blockbuster hit in a crowded summer that included Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, Back to the Future Part II, Lethal Weapon 2 and fellow Rick Moranis film Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Plans for a third film have yet to materialize, but the GB team kept going strong on Saturday morning’s The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters on through the 1990’s.

Movie Release History

1984 - Ghostbusters
1989 - Ghostbusters II

Movie Sub Categories

live-action
sci-fi/fantasy
comedy
horror

Movie Studio

Columbia

Cast

Doctor Peter Venkman   Bill Murray
Doctor Raymond Stantz   Dan Aykroyd
Dana Barrett   Sigourney Weaver
Doctor Egon Spengler  Harold Ramis
Louis Tully  Rick Moranis
Winston Zeddemore  Ernie Hudson
Janine Melnitz   Annie Potts
Janosz Poha   Peter MacNicol
The Judge   Harris Yulin
Mayor   David Margulies
Hardemeyer   Kurt Fuller
The Prosecutor   Janet Margolin
Vigo   Wilhelm von Homburg
Baby Oscar  Will Deutschendorf
Baby Oscar  Hank Deutschendorf
Frank the Doorman   Michael P. Moran
Meter Maid   Olivia Ward
Man with a Ticket  Mordecai Lawner
Young Woman on Crutches  Susan Boehm
Brownstone Mother  Mary Ellen Trainor
Brownstone Boy #1   Christopher Villasenor
Brownstone Boy #2   Jason Reitman
Norman the Producer   Aaron Lustig
Spengler's Assistant   Page Leong
Arguing Couple   Mark Schneider
Arguing Couple  Valery Pappas
Girl with Puppy   Catherine Reitman
First Cop   Dave Florek
Con Ed Supervisor   Richard Foronjy
Bailiff  George Wilbur
Stenographer   Sharon Kramer
Rudy the Museum Guard   Walter Flanagan
Mayor's Doorman  Bobby Baresford Brown
Maitre d'   Christopher Neame
Slimed Restaurant Patron   Judy Ovitz
Store Manager   Robert Alan Beuth
Police Sergeant  Ralph Monaco
Police Lieutenant  Ron Cummins
Dock Supervisor  Cheech Marin
Maria  Yvette Cruise
Detective #1  John Hammil
Detective #2   Ray Glanzmann
Detective #3   Alex Zimmerman
Psychiatrist  Brian Doyle-Murray
Woman with Fur Coat   Louise Troy
Plaza Hotel Man   Douglas Seale
Public Works Official   Ben Stein
Fire Commissioner   Erik Holland
Police Commissioner  Philip Baker Hall

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