Ghostbusters : Kevin is only pretending to be an idiot (600 words)

Well, I suppose I might not surprise many people with that one but Kevin (Chris Hemsworth) is not an idiot in the new Ghostbusters. He’s simply a handsome guy who is really annoyed to be hired solely for his looks and who, as a revenge, offers nothing else than them (Or a guy who, because he is so beautiful and they're not, totally despises the women who hire him).

When he arrives at the Ghostbusters office, he explains (and it’s a lie, we learn later that he had an appointment): “It’s for the receptionist place… I saw the job offer on a wall and as I know how to read, I came.” This remark is a reaction to Erin’s immature awe in front of his handsomeness, it’s a provocation aiming at having them answer something like: “Well, you need more qualifications than simply being able to read to get his job !”

Then comes Abby who’s already talked to Kevin on the phone and would certainly not have agreed to give him an appointment if he had sounded that stupid but who still isn’t that surprised at his utter stupidity… because he is handsome.

You just need to look at Kevin’s face when Erin presents herself and says she available to see how embarrassed, annoyed and disgusted he is by the situation.

And that’s all. After this appalling meeting, he just pretends to be an idiot as a revenge and also as a way to protect himself. Erin asks him if he is single (or alone, I saw the french version), he answers “I’m with you three.”

I have no explanation for the glasses without glasses though.

But the logos are interesting because he shows only three; two of which are not related to ghosts (seven eleven and the floating sandwich). If he worked on the matter (female ghostbusters), he most certainly draw the first one while gathering ideas… or he might even have added two breasts to a more serious logo just in front of Abby, Erin and Jilian.

In any case, he is not showing his real work. He wishes they would realise he cannot be so stupid and won’t do anything for them as long as they do not realise it. If they said: “Well, it’s not good enough and you don’t seem qualified for the job” he would stop acting like an idiot and tell them his way of thinking. But they hire him.

In the following scene in which he appears, he drinks from and spits in Abby’s coffee, pretending to check whether there’s sugar in it or not when she tells him that she hopes he didn’t forget to put some. Again, his idiocy betrays his real opinion ("If you're not satisfied, do it yourself !"). He informs them that Patty’s here after she’s already made the girls aware of her presence. He doesn’t answer the phone, when he does he mispronounces the name of the association and eventually hangs up on his interlocutor. Then he leaves for a “hide and seek” competition.

His behaviour is in-your-face disrespect, not idiocy.

What gave me the idea that Kevin might be perfectly intelligent in the first place was the first serious call they get. He answers it in two seconds, manages to know what the call is about and then tell them with a pun “The Stonebrooks theatre, they’re playing ghost at the opera.” This is absolutely not the kind of allusive joke we’d expect him to do. So, even though he is still “playing” with the girls prejudices about handsomeness (the two pictures of him with a saxophone), he is starting to betray his intelligence. I think he slowly learns to like and care for them anyway.

Then there’s Martin Heiss’ (Bill Murray) visit during which he seems to dislike the doctor: he comments "the guy took the wrong door !" when Martin is thrown through the window by a ghost and dies. And that’s the last scene before he asks to become a Ghostbuster and get possessed by the ghost of Rowan North (Neil Casey).

When Kevin reappears at the end of the film, he is unconscious for several minutes (even if he manages to suggest a shape to the bad guy who is asking for some ideas) and eventually has a little chat with the ghostbusters during which he simply explains how he solved the whole situation. Nobody believes him when actually what he says is pretty convincing. He found Rowan’s computer, shut everything off and it worked. Every ghost apparition was triggered by a machine since the beginning of the movie, why should the last one be any different?