When character actors break free from their molds and take on a leading role, it can make for some of the greatest performances in cinema. Unfortunately for Ricky Gervais, this phenomena doesn’t carry for “Ghost Town,” a mildly funny comedy about a man who can see more than he wants to.
Gervais plays Bertram Pincus, a loathsome human being that has great disdain for his fellow man. While undergoing a conoloscopy, he reacts to his anesthesic and dies for seven minutes. Doctors revive him, but much to Pincus’s dismay, his brief foray in the realm of death leaves him with a sixth sense. He can see dead people.
These ghosts have unfinished business, and they flock to him pleading for his assistance. Ironically, the one man who now has the ability to help these lingering souls is the least compassionate person alive. One such fast talking specter, played by Greg Kinnear, is able to finally garner Pincus’s assistance. His request is that Pincus stop his widowed wife, played by Tea Leoni, from marrying again. Along the way, Pincus begins to fall for her himself.
Despite some good scenes carried by the acting ability of “Ghost Town’s” cast, it doesn’t accomplish much. What makes it hard to get through is its crawling pace and lack of hard hitting big laughs. The plot feels like real time at points and the situational comedy, while sometimes intelligent, provides more giggles than full-fledged laughter. It was evident that even the actors were struggling at points to deliver some poorly written lines. It’s painful to see good actors in films with less than stellar writing.
Halfway through the film, the plot takes an awkward turn and tries to transform into a feel good lifetime movie. In writing such an apathetic character such as Pincus, there is an opportunity to tackle this subject matter in a unique and contemplative way. Sadly that opportunity is not realized. Instead of challenging audiences, the plot falls back on fairytale conventions and a cliché ending. What’s most astounding is that writer/director David Koepp has worked on hit movies such as “Jurassic Park,” “The Shadow,” “War of the Worlds,” and “Spiderman.” Maybe this genre isn’t his forte.
Apart from some interesting time lapses and a good dentistry montage at the onset, “Ghost Town” amounts to a poorly drawn paint-by-number film with some good segments of witty dialogue speckled throughout. It fails to examine life or death on any real level. The not-so-subtle message of living your life to the fullest so you won’t have any unfinished business is shallow and ultimately somewhat annoying. The kind of audience that will appreciate the brand of self-deprecating humor delivered by Gervais doesn’t need to be spoon-fed a plot or theme. Even more irritating is the loss of potential that a supernatural concept such as this carries. “Heart and Souls,” a 1993 film starring Robert Downey Jr., has a similar premise dealing with lingering souls and unfinished business and was ultimately far more effective. If you liked the trailer for “Ghost Town,” rent that film instead.
This film could have been an honest and thought-provoking query about life, death and love coupled with the dry dark comedy of Gervais. It’s a shame that film wasn’t made instead of this one.
