Richard Schickel similarly praised Murray, and the grace of Aykroyd and Ramis in allowing Murray to outshine them. Schickel considered Murray's character Peter Venkman a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to develop fully his patented comic character." He said the effects appear somewhat "tacky" and serve as a comic commentary on ghost films. Ultimately he believed praise was due to all involved for "thinking on a grandly comic scale." Dave Kehr countered Aykroyd and Ramis were "curiously underutilized," but appreciated Murray's deadpan line readings. Kehr said Reitman is adept at improvisational comedy, but lost control of the film as the special effects gradually escalated.