'Ghostbusters' Reboot Doesn't Deserve Criticism

I have to make a confession and I hope you won't judge me too harshly for it: I've never watched the original Ghostbusters. I've had the opportunity over the years, I suppose, but much like Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, it was never really something that interested me. (Okay, you're definitely judging me now, aren't you?) I mention that because despite my lack of interest in the first Ghostbusters movie, I was absolutely thrilled when they announced an all-female reboot of the '80s classic and will definitely be seeing it. Not only will it star some of my favorite actresses — Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy to be specific — but it's also a quirky superhero movie starring women, and that's always something I can get behind. Unfortunately, the Ghostbusters remake has faced a lot of backlash, and in a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Wiig said she was "bummed" about the misogynistic comments it's received.

Wiig admitted that she knows much of the negativity surrounding the new Ghostbusters is based on the fact that it stars women — something that many fans of the original (and jerks in general) had a problem with. "The fact there was so much controversy because we were women was surprising to me," she told the paper. "Some people said some really not nice things about the fact that there were women. It didn't make me mad, it just really bummed me out. We're really honoring those movies."

Ghostbusters is far from the first classic movie to get an update, but it is unique in that director Paul Feig decided to completely re-cast the traditionally male roles with strong, badass women. But isn't that what makes it amazing, as well as more interesting? After all, remaking a movie that's already been done and is held in such high regard seems unnecessary if you're not going to change it in any way, and casting hilarious females at the top of their game is the best possible change there is.

Regardless of the backlash, I'm holding out some serious hopes for the all-female Ghostbusters, not only that it'll be hilarious (which I think is pretty much a given, considering the people involved with it), but also that it'll make a killing at the box office, proving once and for all that female-driven films can dominate just like those that feature mostly men. It's not every day that we get an action film tailored towards us women, and it's about time it happened.

Images: Hopper Stone/Sony Pictures; Columbia Pictures