Ghost Town

  
I spy with my little eye something… realizes Dr. Bertram Pincus (British comedy star Ricky Gervais) horrified. He sees dead people. But what is he to do, when the ghosts of the deceased annoy him more than those living?
German version
 

19.09.2008:
Ghost Town

Comedy

Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear) is a modern business man in New York, who doesn't take being faithful to his wife too serious. But when his mistress calls his wife, that's a bit too much even for him. While he is scolding her on the phone for this indiscretion, he loses his life in an accident and henceforth roams the earth as a ghost.

Bertram Pincus (Ricky Gervais) is not only a dentist, but most notably a very cranky and bitter misanthrope. He is glad when he can stuff his patients' mouths with cotton rolls to make them stop talking, or when he is able to make the elevator door close in his heavily loaded neighbour's face. Pincus even tries to avoid his office colleague Dr. Jahangir Prashat (Aasif Mandvi) as much as possible. He rather sneaks out of their joint practice and downs a pint of purge at home, instead of celebrating the birth of Dr. Prashat's son.

What first looks like an attempt of suicide turns out to be the preparation for an insignificant operation. The surgeon seems to be more interested in her complexion, though, than in her patient, and therefore it comes as no surprise that the routine procedure doesn't go as planed. When Pincus leaves the hospital, he does not only see the living nurses smoking in front of the building, but also one from World War II. This ghost follows him and others join her, for a living who can see the dead is rare.

Ricky Gervais has become very popular in Great Britain due to his extreme dry humour in his two TV serials "The Office" (adopted in Germany as "Stromberg") and "Extras". In "Ghost Town" he plays his first leading role in a Hollywood movie and shines as a bitter loner, who against his will has to deal with his own problems and those of others.

But not only Gervais, but all the others actors, too, impress with the very dry humour which is exactly to the point and which brings the fresh and sarcastic charm of British cinema to this romantic Hollywood comedy. Greg Kinnear has demonstrated his comic talent in the Oscar-winning crowd-pleaser "Litte Miss Sunshine"; Téa Leoni is rather known from supporting roles, e.g. in "Spanglish"; and they all give their characters an intriguing depth and credibility, which makes their development through the story comprehensible for the audience.

This film was evaluated by:
Martin(87%)

Texts:
Martin