Tag: Genre: Supernatural

‘Over Her Dead Body’ (2008) Review

Over Her Dead Body Synopsis: A ghost tries to sabotage her former boyfriend’s current relationship with a psychic.

On her wedding day to Henry (Paul Rudd), Kate (Eva Longoria) is determined that everything will go perfectly. So it’s unacceptable when the ice sculpture angel she ordered shows up without wings. She insists to the ice sculptor that he take it back and bring an angel with wings, leading to an unfortunate accident in which the sculpture falls from the truck, crushing Kate to death. Dun dun!

A year later, Henry, still despondent over his fiance’s death, is brought by his sister to a psychic named Ashley (Lake Bell). There’s hope that if Ashley can contact Kate from the beyond, Henry might find some closure. What happens instead is a scheme devised between Ashley and Henry’s sister, Chloe, to use Kate’s journal to convince Henry that Kate wants him to move on. Unbeknownst to all, Kate’s ghost is watching, and she is determined to ruin the blossoming romance between Ashley and Henry from beyond.

In 2008, Hollywood was churning out quite a few mediocre rom-coms, and Over Her Dead Body happened to be one of them. It’s a movie with much potential but, unfortunately, fell short.

Over Her Dead Body has a fantastic cast. Lake Bell, Paul Rudd, and Stephen Root are all brilliantly funny in their own right. A rom-com with Lake Bell and Paul Rudd? Come on. Those two alone should have made for a classic. Instead, their talents are wasted on a rather bland script that relies on familiar, unfunny gags. If I’m being frank, Bell and Rudd don’t even have much chemistry, which is painful for me to admit.

Eva Longoria is a bit stifled in her role as Kate. She’s stuck in purgatory until she completes her unfinished business, which she believes is protecting Henry from Ashley. She pops up to annoy Ashley and sabotage Ashley and Henry’s relationship, so clearly, she needs help moving on as well, not only from her relationship with Henry but also, you know, life. Ashley has the ability to communicate with Kate, but instead of embracing it and perhaps helping both put the past behind them, she fights with Kate in a way that is very much reminiscent of high school girls chasing the same guy. The premise could have been really fun and funny, but it falls flat.

There is also a subplot where Ashley’s co-worker, Dan (Jason Biggs), pretends to be her gay best friend just to be close to her. It seems unnecessary, but it is explained in some context that because Dan didn’t make a move on her within a week, she assumed he was gay, and… he went with it. I don’t know. I suppose this was a way to set up Henry realizing that he loves Ashley as he finds out she’s leaving town with Dan… her new boyfriend? Again, I don’t know.

To be fair to Over Her Dead Body, there are some humorous moments, and Paul Rudd and Lake Bell are still perfect leads for a rom-com, but maybe just not this one and maybe not together. However, I can’t help but wonder if, given a better script, they would have shined together with the right kind of chemistry.

Watched: 01/12/2024
Notable Song: Move Along by All American Rejects

Rating:

01/14/2024
‘Kiss Me Goodbye’ (1982) Review

Kiss Me Goodbye Synopsis: The ghost of a dead husband haunts his wife as she moves back to their house in NYC. She’s about to marry an egyptologist there.

Just days before her wedding to Rupert, an Egyptologist, Kay makes the unexpected decision to move back into her old home—now haunted by the ghost of her late husband, Jolly. Though only Kay can see Jolly, her conversations with him in front of others start to raise doubts about her mental state. As the wedding draws closer, Kay must confront a deeper question: Is Rupert truly the right man for her, or is she still holding on to the memory of Jolly?

Despite the cast, Kiss Me Goodbye is a bit of a mess. Sally Field seems to pull her weight here as Kay, but that’s likely because Kay appears to be the most developed character out of the three leads, even though that’s not saying much.

Jeff Bridges is handsome and shows glimpses of his on-screen charisma, but his character, Rupert, is so dull and, honestly, kind of a jerk. He and Kay are mismatched in every way, though the movie tries to dismiss their lack of chemistry as being Kay’s fault for not yet letting go of her deceased husband.

James Caan plays the ghostly ex, a Broadway choreographer who was the life of the party when he was alive. Caan does what he can, and he’s fun to watch because he’s James Caan, but Jolly is as much of a jerk as Rupert, and I felt no spark between him and Kay. Why had they been married in the first place? We don’t get much in the way of knowing what their marriage had been like, so their scenes post-Jolly’s death come across as flat and emotionless (despite Kay’s teary-eyed hysteria).

The supporting cast is as talented as the main cast is. Still, the actors are sorely underused, especially Paul Dooley and Claire Trevor, who, in my opinion, is the best part of the film as Kay’s blunt, disapproving mother. Everyone feels wasted on this script, which is lifeless and bland. Despite Kiss Me Goodbye being a romantic comedy, I wanted Kay to end up alone. Jolly is boorish, and Rupert is tiresome. Kay may be a neurotic mess, but she’s too good for either guy.

If you can’t already tell, I didn’t enjoy Kiss Me Goodbye much. There is a complete lack of chemistry between any of the leads, which is crazy to comprehend, considering the acting caliber of all three. There are some humorous moments between Kay, Rupert, and Jolly as Kay tries to get Rupert to believe in Jolly’s existence, but there are certainly not enough to call this a comedy. So much of the intended humor falls flat. James Caan took a break from acting for five years after his experience making this movie, so that probably tells you all you need to know about it.

Watched: 08/25/2021
Notable Song: But It’s A Nice Dream by Dusty Springfield

Rating:

08/27/2021
‘Last Christmas’ (2019) Review

Last Christmas Synopsis: Kate is a young woman full of bad decisions who works at a Christmas shop dressed as an elf. When she meets Tom, her life takes a turn in an unexpected way.

The holiday season is officially upon us, and with turkey and commercials for expensive cars with big red bows comes the never-ending barrage of holiday romances. Thanks to the combination of Paul Feig, Emma Thompson, and Henry Golding, Last Christmas quickly became my most anticipated romantic comedy of the year. The Christmas setting was just festive, wrapping up my excitement.

Emilia Clarke plays Kate, a woman who continually makes bad choices, uses her friends, ignores her family, and has admittedly never felt right after the heart transplant that saved her life. She works at a year-round Christmas shop under the watchful eye of “Santa” (Michelle Yeoh), who seems to be constantly disappointed in Kate but continues to give her chances to prove herself.

One afternoon, she catches a young man watching a bird and curiously wanders outside, where the bird promptly takes a poo in her eye. This man turns out to be Tom (Golding), and despite Kate’s apprehension, she finds herself drawn to him. He’s handsome and kind and encourages Kate to take in the world around her instead of going through the numbing motions of her day-to-day life. Meeting Tom seems to spark something deep within Kate, and she begins to turn her life around as she falls in love.

Last Christmas is more dramedy than comedy, and while there is indeed romance, the story is solely Kate’s. She is selfish and imperfect, but Clarke gives a really wonderful performance, giving Kate the depth and vulnerability to make her feel relatable and real.

Golding proved his appeal as a leading man in last year’s Crazy Rich Asians and remains swoon-worthy and charming in Last Christmas. Despite the mystery surrounding his character, Tom still felt fully developed, which was a relief, as so many love interests in these kinds of movies feel stale and one-dimensional. He and Clarke share genuine chemistry, and their tender interactions perfectly balance the more dramatic moments.

But it’s not all ice skating, holiday decor, and wistful glances. The movie touches upon a variety of issues that a lot of romantic comedies would steer clear of – depression, Brexit, xenophobia, and acceptance of the LGBTQ community. These themes kept the movie grounded in reality, whereas Kate and Tom’s blossoming romance supplied the magic.

Kate comes from a rather dysfunctional immigrant family, and one of the movie’s highlights is Emma Thompson as Petra, Kate’s intrusive but loving Yugoslavian mother. She and Michelle Yeoh, who is surprisingly funny as “Santa”, get the majority of the laughs here, but there really isn’t a weak link in the entire supporting cast. I appreciated that Feig didn’t waste any character’s screen time, no matter how small their part.

There has been a lot of discussion regarding the movie’s “plot twist”, which viewers theorized about after the official trailer dropped. No spoilers here, but Last Christmas doesn’t surprise you with anything that hasn’t been done before. It’s predictable, but I thought it was executed well enough that I still found myself emotionally affected by it. Maybe Last Christmas could be described as schmaltzy, corny, or overly sentimental, but it’s also a really powerful, heartwarming story about family, second chances, and finding value in who you are. And I think that’s something everyone could use this time of year.

Watched: 11/09/2019
Notable Song: Last Christmas by George Michael

Rating:

11/11/2019