Ricky Gervaise is one of those comedians who should be more annoying than he actually is. That's not to say he isn't annoying - he is - but this annoyance factor is surpassed by his sense of humour and comic timing. He gives a good performance here, and is entirely believable as a cold misanthropic dentist who finds himself harassed by dead people after temporarily dying himself on the operating table. Greg Kinnear is the dead guy who manages to monopolise Gervaise's services and it is in the relationship between these two - and Kinnear's wife (Tea Leoni) - that the film finds it's heart.
The story is obviously pretty daft, but it is the comedy - and Gervaise's delivery of it - that makes this film better than it might otherwise have been. While he's no leading man - as he grows older he is beginning to look more and more like a young(ish) Winston Churchill - this type of role is perfect for his talents and he doesn't waste the opportunity to show them off to good effect. There are a handful of genuinely funny moments, which is quite a rich haul for Hollywood comedies these days, and a refreshing resistance to the temptation to insert major gross-out gags. Despite a few cynical expletives and near the knuckle jokes, this one would probably appeal to fans of comedies from Hollywood's vintage era.
The story is obviously pretty daft, but it is the comedy - and Gervaise's delivery of it - that makes this film better than it might otherwise have been. While he's no leading man - as he grows older he is beginning to look more and more like a young(ish) Winston Churchill - this type of role is perfect for his talents and he doesn't waste the opportunity to show them off to good effect. There are a handful of genuinely funny moments, which is quite a rich haul for Hollywood comedies these days, and a refreshing resistance to the temptation to insert major gross-out gags. Despite a few cynical expletives and near the knuckle jokes, this one would probably appeal to fans of comedies from Hollywood's vintage era.