Ghost Town (2008)

Directed by: David Koepp | 102 minutes | drama, comedy, romance | Actors: Greg Kinnear, Jordan Carlos, Dequina Moore, Brian Hutchison, Tyree Michael Simpson, Julia K. Murney, Ricky Gervais, Aasif Mandvi, Bridget Moloney, Brad Oscar, Kathleen Landis, Téa Leoni, Audrie J. Neenan, Kristen Wiig, Aaron Tveit, Deborah S. Craig, Betty Gilpin, Angelis Alexandris, Elaine Cusick, Kim Russell, Alan Ruck, Brian Tarantina, Darren Pettie, Jesse Means, Robert Kelly, Gabrielle Fink, Michael-Leon Wooley, Monte Bezell, Sebastian Lacause, Dana Ivey Miles Grose, Jeff Hiller, Lou Sumrall, Richard O’Rourke, Brian d’Arcy James, Bill Campbell, Josh Clayton, Lisa Datz, James Ludwig, Melissa Thomas, Shawn Hill, Megan Byrne, José Ramón Rosario, Jose Soto, Candace Thaxton, Dylan Clark Marshall

What do you do when you can see ghosts? This is a question that has been asked and answered in dozens of movies, from comedies to horror. Despite the not very original premise, ‘Ghost Town’ still manages to give an interesting and inventive twist to this worn-out theme, resulting in a sparkling and surprisingly strong film.

Writer and director David Koepp has not taken the easy way out of making it a standard romantic comedy, with Hugh Grant being cut out for the lead role, opposite Sandra Bullock as the widow whose heart he wants to win. Rather, by casting Ricky Gervais as Bertram Pincus as his “leading man,” more is expected of the viewer than just sitting back and letting the predictable outcome come at you. Especially because Ricky Gervais makes Bertram a pretty unsympathetic character. Gervais, like Grant, is British, but that’s where the comparison ends. The burly Gervais is certainly not an obvious choice, but he definitely steals the show as a man-hating dentist and his dryly comedic comments. Precisely by not going for a big smile, but playing Bertram dead serious, he makes his first leading role completely his own.

Ghost Town has elements of a romantic comedy, without being quite one. In his scenario, Koepp plays with the clichés and sails around the pitfalls. He previously wrote the screenplays for such diverse films as ‘Death Becomes Her’ and ‘Jurassic Park’ and directed horror-like thrillers such as ‘Stir of Echoes’ and ‘Secret Window’. He knows how to mix his experience with various styles here. The film is not a hilarious comedy, although there are a few rock-solid scenes that can make you laugh out loud, but it will generate a pleasant smile across the board. Gradually, there is even a slightly dramatic touch, when Bertram comes to the aid of a number of ghosts who are stalking him. The spirits, it becomes clear, cannot “go on” because they have issues unfinished. Since Bertram can communicate with both the dead and the living, he is obviously an ideal medium. Original find here is that the living sneeze when they walk right through a ghost.

Gervais gets a good counterbalance from his fellow players. Greg Kinnear is the opportunistic bastard Frank, who – in a strong opening scene – dies. He has a somewhat thankless role, but Kinnear has a nice interaction with Gervais, with both characters being bastards, but where you as a viewer will find them (a little) sympathetic. Leoni shows her best side and is clearly having fun in a role that would be played by a Sandra Bullock or Meg Ryan in a conventional rom-com.

Despite the combination of styles, ‘Ghost Town’ has not become an unbalanced film. Koepp is too experienced in the trade for that. He finds a balance between comedy, (light) drama and blossoming romance. Perhaps something more could have been done with the plot development, because there are some missed opportunities around the fact of ghosts on Earth. There is also something to criticize about the dialogues here and there, which are not always sharp. This makes some situations seem a bit forced, which the actors cannot rectify. Furthermore, ‘Ghost Town’ is excellent entertainment and definitely recommended for the viewer who wants something more than a pre-prepared and predictable story that has already been shown a hundred times.