Over Her Dead Body
Some films are meant for
excellence and some are just what they are. It is like music. Not every
song can be Lennon’s “Imagine” or Marvin Gaye’s
“What’s going on”. So when
a movie like Over Her Dead Body comes along you know what you are
getting into. If you purchase a movie ticket with
expectations of plot depth
and stirring lines of dialogue you probably rush out and buy Jessica Simpson’s
CD hoping for Grammy inspired greatness. But
you don’t. You get it for
what it is. That is why I sort of like this film because it did what it
set out to do. Be romantic and at the same time funny. I didn’t get my
hopes up for something on the scale of The Holiday or Something’s Gotta
Give. I was just hoping for not horrible. And though it came close a few
times, it did have some reviving moments.
The story is simple enough.
Kate (Eva Longoria Parker) dies before she can marry her fiancé
Henry (Paul Rudd) and decides to haunt whatever female
tries to take her place.
In this case it would be the quirky psychic Ashley (Lake Bell) who Henry’s
sister Chloe (Lindsey Sloane) has hired to help
Henry move on and start
dating other women. Got it? Throw in the stereotypical gay side kick Dan
(Jason Biggs) and you have yourself the makings for romantic comedy magic.
And at times it does work. Mainly thanks to Rudd. Henry is the stable part
of this film and without him this movie would fall apart. He has the truly
good lines and is the only one who seems able to deliver them. Parker is
ok in the role of haunter but never takes it to any heights. Plus Ashley
seems so different from Kate that you wonder how they ever managed to get
engaged to start with. There are some back stories
that clue you in but who
wants to think that much in this type of film?
If anything you sort of feel
for Kate in the fact that she is not a bad person trying to wreck another’s
happiness. She was a victim of a terrible tragedy. So even though you want
the two principle characters to hook up you have to sympathize with the
antagonist. But even with all of this to think over is it a big screen
must see? No. Over Her Dead Body is a movie made for HBO or DVD. With the
price of movie tickets these days it is hard to rationalize spending that
sort of cash for something that you have seen 100 times with different
faces. So the avid movie goer will bypass this with good reason. But for
a girls night or those who love films that are light and have a few laughs
it serves it purpose. I have a hard time picturing a group of Tri Delts
flocking to see There Will be Blood. So it is good to have these films
around.
Over Her Dead Body
is rated PG-13 for sexual content and language. It does not push the envelope
any more than the others in this genre. Kate is not a
scary ghost and even the
moments of psychic interaction are campy and non offensive. There are some
sexy moments but they are needed as much as
anything else. If you get
uncomfortable with mild sexual dialogue then you probably don’t like romantic
comedies anyway. It is what makes the genre.
Look, nothing I can tell
you will add or detract from your opinions of these sorts of films. I can
give it a 5 or a 1 and you still either hate or love the genre. So up against
romantic comedies only, I give it a 2. It is as good as or better than
the normal J-Lo fodder but that is about it. I am always suckered in to
these films and I didn’t hate it. But I did find myself wishing Kate Hudson
or Jennifer Garner would show up and salvage what was left.
Matt Mungle (1/28/08)
Matt is a member of the North
Texas Film Critics Association (NTFCA) and co-hosts a weekly radio feature,
The Mungles on Movies, with his wife Cindy.
For additional reviews,
interview clips and great DVD giveaways, visit the website www.mungleshow.com
Review copyright 2008 Mungleshow
Productions. Used by Permission.
| I had a chance to sit down
with Over Her Dead Body star Eva Longoria Parker to discuss her character
and the genre of romantic comedies. To hear this 5 minute chat click
here!
Matt Mungle |
|
