Movie Review : Over Her Dead Body

Over Her Dead Body, some guys may well be dead then watching this movie but it’s a romantic comedy my favourite genre I had to watch it! Coming this Thursday in our cinemas. Warning spoilers!

There is no good reason on Earth to like Over Her Dead Body. Which just makes the fact that it’s a hoot all the more enjoyable.

It’s certainly not offering anything radically new. This is a talking ghost movie, the sort of comic film that has a character come back from the beyond looking awfully cute while messing with the lives of the living. The “Topper” films, “Blithe Spirit,” even “Hello Again” have all plowed this fertile field.

Worse, this film is far from perfectly executed. Jason Biggs plays the most unwarranted gay best friend to ever appear in a script, and there is a serious over-abundance of gay best friends in the modern dramatic canon.

Still, if you’re looking for a perfectly brainless little piffle of a movie to pad the path to spending time with your partner, this may be the sweet waste of time you need.

Why does it work? That’s easy: Its three lead characters have just the right mix of sass, slapstick and sincerity to pull off the film’s preposterous premise. This is the sort of film that never wins awards, but really, let’s see Daniel Day-Lewis sell an absurd romantic comedy ghost story.

Luckily Day-Lewis is nowhere to be found in this movie. Instead there’s Eva Longoria Parker playing Kate, seemingly enjoying a bridezilla moment on the day of her wedding when, whoops, she’s accidentally killed.

Movie Review : Over Her Dead Body

Awaking in neither heaven nor hell, Kate instead comes to in a white room, where a woman attempts to give her instructions, but Kate yammers and yells so much that when she suddenly finds her ghostly self back on earth, she has no idea what she’s supposed to do.

She assumes she’s been sent back to protect Henry (Paul Rudd), the guy she was set to marry. So when Henry goes to a psychic named Ashley (Lake Bell) to resolve his feelings for Kate, the ghostly Kate is right there listening in.

And when Henry and Ashley start working on a mutual attraction, Kate is right there to wreck things. Because it turns out the psychic Ashley can see Kate, even if no one else can.

As ridiculous and broad as this all is, writer-director Jeff Lowell is saved by his stars, who seem to be having a blast elevating the enterprise past any expectations.

The big surprise is Bell, who had fallen off the radar since starring in the first season of “Boston Legal.” Balancing beauty, casual charm and a nice slapstick command of her long-legged body, she manages to make you believe she is that most rare creature, a thoroughly nice hottie.

Less of a surprise is Rudd, everybody’s favorite second-banana (“Knocked Up,” “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Anchorman”), getting a chance at a lead and breezing through it as effortlessly as he seems to do everything.

What sells the movie, though, is Parker. True, she’s mostly just channeling Gabrielle, her character on TV’s “Desperate Housewives.” But it turns out Gabrielle makes one heck of a spoiled spitfire ghost, and Parker, whose sense of poise and timing is immaculate, exults in the role. She has a golden knack for making despicable people fun.

The nice thing about it is that everyone seems to realize the film’s limitations – come on, a ghost story? – while still enjoying its goofiness.

Overall, this is a film that’s completely happy being its silly little self. And if it produces some giggles along the way – and it does – it has done its job. I did have some giggles really! Recommended to those who loves romantic comedies only :)

Official Movie Poster
Movie Review : Over Her Dead Body
 Singapore Date: 24th April 2008
Language: English
Running Time: 95 mins
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance / Comedy
Tagline: Just because she’s passed on… Doesn’t mean she’s moving on.
Starring: Eva Longoria, Paul Rudd, Jason Biggs
Directed by: Jeff Lowell
Company: Gold Circle Films
Singapore Distributor: Cathay-Keris Films

iZone Rating:

6/10
Official Website : Over Her Dead Body

Movie Trailer

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