
That’s quite unusual. Despite the prevalence of ghosts in modern horror (see, for example, Paranormal Activity or Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House), stories of people who go in search of ghosts are rather rare.
It’s more of a “if” than a “get this ghost out of my darn house” scenario, but paranormal investigators will always be around to do some tests, get scared around a little, and solve the riddle in the end. The question boils down to this: why isn’t anyone else attempting a Ghostbusters sequel?
Lockwood & Co. isn’t Ghostbusters; it’s not really a comedy, and it’s more darker than the 1980s favourite ever ventured to explore. However, it does capture the exhilaration of pursuing the otherworldly, and it features a wise-cracking trio of appealing teenage heroes.
The fact that Joe Cornish, who made aliens cool again in Attack the Block and did the same for fantasy in the largely unappreciated The Boy Who Would Be King, has managed to complete his hat-trick here in this witty, shockingly disturbing adaptation of a popular YA book is perhaps not so unexpected.
The deal? Finally, buckle up. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Britain was terrorised by a “ghost pandemic,” which halted the technological revolution and forced people to stay home at night out of fear.
It was quickly realised that only children could perceive, see, and detect the ghosts, thus a slew of ghost-hunting organisations led by adults sprung up to fight the spectres with the only weapons they had against them: iron and steel.
The plot resumes in the present day with Lucy Carlyle (Ruby Stokes, who left Bridgerton for this), a psychic-sensitive hunter, who has travelled south from her northern home in search of fame and money.
In charge of it are the arrogant Anthony Lockwood (Cameron Chapman) and his nerdy best friend George Karim (Ali Hadji-Heshmati). The time for excitement has come.
Obviously, that’s a lot to process at once. Lockwood & Co. starts to mix scares, thrills, and detective intrigue into a really gratifying whole after a stuttering start as the story tries to bring a number of moving elements into position. Even better if it has a fantastic gothic music.
Most of this is due to the fact that every encounter with a ghost is fraught with peril—in this universe, a single touch from a ghost can kill you, raising the stakes even higher—and so they fight back with quaint weapons like swords and chains (and the occasional magnesium bomb), which is not only visually pleasing but also results in some interesting and unique battle sequences.
The CGI budget probably won’t keep Disney up at night, but it’s utilised well and creatively enough to scare you, especially in a particularly unsettling sequence with a group of ghostly monks. It has a touch of Doctor Who about it.
Lockwood & Co. is a British supernatural thriller that, if given a chance, would provide a frightfully wonderful time for its viewers. However, Netflix is a fickle beast, and good series may quickly go by the wayside in favour of safer garbage.
Streaming on Netflix from Friday 27