We have come to a point in our society when the line "I see dead people" spurs people to wish they were dead. This tired line is overplayed in pandering movies that come across as an affront to basic human intelligence.
"Ghost Town," starring Ricky Gervais, the rancorously amusing writer and comedian responsible for the creation of the original British version of "The Office," takes this exact premise and puts it on the screen. He sees dead people. And it's annoying him.
Gervais fills the lead role of dentist Bertram Pincus, an unapologetic, cynical loner who views the rest of the world with disdain because he perceives people as illogical and therefore finds himself unable to connect, believing he would be better off alone. Pincus is decidedly the anti-stud - a roly-poly Englishman living in New York City with a schoolboy grin that he uses as often as he dons the dentist's smock that epitomizes his early character.
During a medical procedure that conveniently lends itself to a myriad of bathroom and gay jokes, Pincus dies for seven minutes. When he is revitalized, he can see all the ghosts of New York who have some sort of unfinished business to reconcile. When the ghosts realize that a real, living person can see and help them, they latch on to Pincus and begin tearing his ear off with requests to find lost mementos, alleviate guilt, apologize for them and so on.
One ghost, however, makes Pincus a request he can't refuse. This comes from Frank Herlihy, played by Greg Kinnear, who tells Pincus that if he breaks up the impending marriage of his widow, Gwen (Téa Leoni), to the painfully sincere, maddeningly decent human-rights lawyer, Richard (Billy Campbell), all the ghosts will leave him alone. Pincus breaks up the engagement, eventually falls for Gwen and yada, yada, yada; there's your movie.
The filmmakers set the right tone and timing from the start and continued the established flow right up until the end. Comedic timing was not only practiced by the cast but also by the writers and director with shots of Central Park overlaid with music that could be on the next Apple commercial.
While the filmmakers ride the line of romantic comedy hard, this film never quite crosses into that genre. The film still retains its edge by balancing sappy, reflective and quasi-existential lines with slightly demented afterthoughts.
Gervais plays a showcase role in this film. His own brand of comedy - one acerbic comic tirade after another and the occasional silly one-liner - stands out nicely against a rotating backdrop of ordinarily weird, straight men. While many of the minor characters are typical, the casting for "Ghost Town" is outstanding. The diversity of the cast is realistic and almost dead-on perfect; right down to the unspeaking extras sitting with mouths gaping in the dentist chair. Everyone featured is a little bit quirky and a little bit awkward. Along with all the real-life awkwardness and silliness that typifies the British and American versions of "The Office," this movie is relatable in a way that makes people see themselves as fitting into this absurd, semi-realistic world.
You can reach this writer at thescene@theeagleonline.com.
