Editorials
Happy 20th Anniversary to ‘Copycat!’
October 27th brings us the 20th anniversary of the oft-forgotten thriller* Copycat, starring Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Dermot Mulroney and Harry Connick, Jr. Released in 1995 at the tail-end of copycats (sorry) of The Silence of the Lambs, Copycat tends to slip by in discussions of great serial killer thrillers, since Scream would come out a year later and overshadow most 90s slashers that came before it. Not that Copycat is necessarily a slasher, but you’re more likely to find someone who has never heard of Copycat over someone who has never heard of Scream of The Silence of the Lambs, and that’s just not right.
*Before you cry “But Copycat isn’t a horror film,” please allow me to direct you to Jonathan’s post right here. If The Silence of the Lambs can be considered horror, so can Copycat.
***SPOILERS of a 20-year-old film to follow***
In Copycat, an attack by serial killer Daryll Lee Cullum (Harry Connick, Jr.) renders renowned criminal psychologist Helen Hudson (Sigourney Weaver) an agoraphobic. Thirteen months after the attack, a different serial killer begins to copycat some of the most notorious serial killers of the century. With the help of Inspector M.J. Monahan (Holly Hunter) and her partner Reuben Goetz (Dermot Mulroney), they work together to track the copycat before he can kill more people.
What makes Copycat such a special film is that unlike so many other films in the genre, it avoids gender stereotypes. The women are the stars of the show and they are capable of taking care of themselves. Even Weaver’s character, who is relegated to her apartment for 90% of the film, is portrayed as a strong female, despite her handicap.
Copycat’s parallels with The Silence of the Lambs are apparent. In Copycat, Monahan but use the help of an incarcerated expert on criminals and psychopaths (Weaver) to help her solve a crime, just as Clarice Starling had to utilize the help of Hannibal Lecter. Copycat’s twist on this plot is to have the incarcerated intellectual be female and not a criminal. Monahan is also a seasoned police inspector compared to the rookie Clarice Starling. To my knowledge (and I could be wrong), this is the first film to feature two women law enforcement officers working together to take down the villain. Dermot Mulroney’s Goetz is the sidekick and rookie in this film, and he gets killed at the end of the second act by a random criminal in the police station.
The Silence of the Lambs isn’t the only film that influenced Copycat. Wait Until Dark, the 1967 Audrey Hepburn thriller in which she is confined to her apartment because of her blindness. Helen’s agoraphobia directly parallels Hepburn’s character’s vision impairment.
Copycat was a type of feminist movie that no one had ever seen before, which makes it unfathomable that it isn’t name-dropped in film discussions more often. Its influence can be seen even in films like The Heat. Hell, the film even has a gay character whose sexual orientationis barely mentioned, which isn’t even something that’s common in films that are released today.
While the feminist ideals and the chemistry between the two leads is a major selling point of Copycat, the film has so much more going for it. Directed by John Amiel (who would go on to direct critical darlings Entrapment and The Core), Copycat features stella performances from everyone in the cast. Connick, Jr. has never been creepier, Mulroney is great as the junior detective and even William McNamara plays a great villain you love to hate.
Part of the fun of Copycat is the crime scenes. Watching the film plays like a “Greatest Hits” edition of America’s most notorious serial killers. From The Boston Strangler to Son of Sam to Ted Bundy, Copycat hits all the major players. While it is very much a cop movie, the film features the psychological elements much more prominently, making it a more compelling film.
There are disturbing moments aplenty in the film (though nothing particularly gory), the primary one being the opening sequence of Connick’s attack on Weaver, but there are severed fingers left in books, ants set loose in a bed, a really creepy animated email video and the climactic showdown between Helen and the titular copycat. Twists and turns feature prominently in Copycat, but the fun comes from watching Helen and M.J. piece together the clues to determine the killer’s pattern (the reveal is particularly clever).
Of course, Copycat is not a perfect film. Despite the aforementioned twists and turns, the overall narrative arc is pretty predictable (Helen must eventually face her agoraphobia head-on) and the twist in the final scene, while creepy, isn’t wholly necessary (and is a tease for a sequel that never came to fruition).
That being said, Copycat is still one of the more underrated thrillers of the 90s that should find its way back into popular culture. It did moderately well at the box office, making $32 million on a $20 million budget, so clearly some people have seen it. Give it a re-watch (or watch it for the first time) this week to celebrate its 20th anniversary!
No conversation about cartoons based on live-action movies is ever complete without mentioning The Real Ghostbusters.
This animated continuation is, warts and all, a notable example of turning a hit movie into a hit series. And although the new target demographic skewed a little younger, even kids-at-heart could partake in the further adventures of Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, Winston Zeddemore and Egon Spengler.
For a good part of its run, the show required fans to wait at least a week for more Ghostbustin’. That’s torture for a kiddo. Luckily, though, the entire series, or at least most of it, is now available for streaming.
So, as you revisit The Real Ghostbusters on Tubi—for now it’s just the first five seasons there—use this guide to help prioritize some must-see episodes.
The Boogieman Cometh
“The Boogieman Cometh” (Season 1)
Season One’s “The Boogieman Cometh” is a classic episode featuring one of the show’s more iconic villains. It’s hard to forget the unique character design used for the Boogieman (whose creepy voice was provided by Ray and Slimer’s actor, Frank Welker). In this story, Egon is reunited with that bump-in-the-night entity who haunted his own childhood, all while trying to keep him away from his latest targets: the brother and sister claiming to have the Boogieman in their closet. Although the Ghostbusters do save the day here, the Boogieman eventually returns (“The Bogeyman Is Back“). That same episode also features the love-’em-or-hate-’em Junior Ghostbusters.
Mr. Sandman, Dream Me a Dream
“Mr. Sandman, Dream Me a Dream” (Season 1)
You could say the namesake of “Mr. Sandman, Dream Me a Dream” had good intentions for putting mankind to sleep for the next few centuries—he wanted to end war and keep everyone dreaming. Sounds nice until you remember that whole free will business. But when it seems like the Ghostbusters have lost to their latest foe, the last one standing, Winston, gains a sudden ally. Janine’s dream of becoming a Ghostbuster is manifested, and she helps put this rogue spirit to bed.
When Halloween Was Forever
“When Halloween Was Forever” (Season 1)
Before the show’s execs capitalized on Slimer’s popularity by making him the focus of later episodes, early stories like “When Halloween Was Forever” better utilized that gooey ghost. Here, the spirit of Halloween itself, Samhain, hopes to make the holiday a permanent thing by stopping time. And who does the embodiment of All Hallows’ Eve use in his nefarious plot? Slimer, of course. Thankfully, the lil’ green bud knows where he really belongs, and Samhain is banished (at least until Season 3’s “Halloween II 1/2“).
Night Game
“Night Game” (Season 2)
Because Season Two was rather long, in comparison to other seasons, it accumulated quite a few solid episodes. One of the most beloved, though, is that ultimate good-versus-evil story, “Night Game“. Winston gets to shine here as he participates in a battle that was 500 years in the making. Except this time, the fighting is done on the baseball field. The other-dimensional settings in The Real Ghostbusters are always great, but the one here is particularly memorable.
Drool, the Dog-Faced Goblin
“Drool, the Dog-Faced Goblin” (Season 2)
Not all ghosts and whatnot were bad in The Real Ghostbusters. As “Drool, the Dog-Faced Goblin” showed, some were actually benevolent. Sadly, it took a lot of convincing, and one very heroic act, for Peter and the others to see past this goblin’s grotesque appearance. The heroes find more than one shapeshifter at a sideshow carnival in the Poconos; a sinister Class-4er called the Metamorph does a swell job of menacing the Ghostbusters before they finally realize Drool’s not their culprit. The good guys indeed win here, but that victory is a bittersweet one.
The Collect Call of Cathulhu
“The Collect Call of Cathulhu” (Season 2)
While “The Collect Call of Cathulhu” does misspell “Cthulhu” in the title (probably to avoid legal issues), it is clearly the Old One in this Lovecraft-inspired episode. The story kicks off with the Necronomicon being stolen by the deity’s modern-day cult, who then raise their ancient god at Coney Island. From there, the Ghostbusters’ typical methods don’t work on the big guy, so they seek advice from an old issue of Weird Tales (or “Wierd Tales”, as it’s spelled on screen). That build-up to the finale comes with a decent amount of dread before the Ghostbusters, as well as a scholar named Alice, face off with one of the show’s most powerful entities.
Knock, Knock
“Knock, Knock” (Season 2)
A number of Real Ghostbusters episodes could be reworked into big-screen features, but perhaps “Knock, Knock” is the most hopeful. It helps that this story feels in step with the first two movies. Here, some ignorant construction workers accidentally uncover and open an ancient door in the subway. What’s behind said door is none other than those unspeakable evils that only the Ghostbusters can quell. A good deal of the imagery here is prime for adaptation.
The Grundel
“The Grundel” (Season 3)
One of the darker episodes, which was written by the prominent J. Michael Straczynski, is “The Grundel“. Here, a boy is being influenced by the titular entity, a type of ghost who ultimately turns his targets into new Grundels. The episode does have something of an after-school special quality to it, but that doesn’t take away from the eerier moments. For more Grundel lore, be sure to check out the episode “Grundelesque” from the sequel series, Extreme Ghostbusters.
Standing Room Only
“Standing Room Only” (Season 4)
It’s no secret that The Real Ghostbusters experienced multiple changes after the second season. Out of all of them, though, retooling the show so that Slimer would get more of the spotlight is maybe the most egregious. Thankfully, Season Four (the first to be called Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters) didn’t completely obey that new directive; episodes like “Standing Room Only” felt more like the old days. The focus here was on the well-being of the city and its people, rather than on the series’ green mascot (or the Junior Ghostbusters). In the episode, Peter’s new ghost attractor isn’t to blame for the ensuing chaos; the ghost-eating Mee-Krah is what’s really imperiling everyone. And the Ghostbusters must dish out everything they have to avoid a doomsday situation.
The Halloween Door
“The Halloween Door” (Season 5)
While many fans will skip the later seasons in their rewatches, episodes like “The Halloween Door” are still worth checking out. This colorful helping of Halloween pandemonium premiered on primetime, so the animation is better than usual. And save for a random musical moment, it’s an enjoyable event. Here, a group of anti-Halloweeners tries to cancel the holiday, but they only end up making things worse by unleashing a baddie named Boogaloo.
The first five seasons of The Real Ghostbusters are available on Tubi, starting on July 15.
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