Ghost Town Review

There are no spoilers in this review.

PLOT: Bertram Pincus is a man whose people skills leave much to be desired. When Pincus dies unexpectedly, but is miraculously revived after seven minutes, he wakes up to discover that he now has the annoying ability to see ghosts.


THE GOOD: Funny. Ghost Town is certainly one of the funniest films of 2008. It's getting a lot harder to find comedies that don't use crude humor like the Judd Apatow or Kevin Smith films. Even Tropic Thunder, one of the best rated comedies of last year, has its fair share of foul language. Ghost Town is a bit more tasteful and deploys a lot more situational humor which has always been Ricky Gervais' strong suit. It's a romantic comedy that's not too romantic.


Story. Creative story. Touching, really.

Messages. There are some great messages one can pull out of this film. Messages about selflessness, community, and privacy.

Acting. All the players in this film are great. I don't think I need to say much more about Ricky Gervais' great first leading performance. Greg Kinnear does a great job playing the most desperate ghost Bertram encounters. Tea Leoni is also delightful and creates an immediately lovable character. Last, Kristin Wiig gives off the funniest performance out of all the supporting cast.


THE BAD: Unoriginal. The whole seeing dead people thing can be seen as copying from other films, but Ghost Town is a little unique. Still, I can't help but wonder if this movie would have been as good without Ricky Gervais.


THE END: Ghost Town would be in my Top 20 of 2008 if I made such a list. Despite the generally positive reviews, the movie fell under the radar due to poor marketing and Gervais not being an American household name yet. It is certainly a must watch. Go rent it now!


DISCUSS: What is your favorite Ricky Gervais bit? Did you like The Office and Extras? Have you seen any of his brilliant stand-up? How does Ghost Town rank against other comedies released in '08?