Over Her Dead Body (2008)

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Director:

Jeff Lowell

Writer (WGA):

Jeff Lowell (written by)

Release Date:

1 February 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

Just because she's passed on... Doesn't mean she's moving on.

Plot:

A ghost tries to sabotage her former boyfriend's current relationship with a psychic. |

Plot Keywords:

Psychic | Ghost | Dog | Trauma | Wilhelm Scream

US TV Schedule:

Tue. July 7	8:45 AM	HBO
Wed. July 15	2:30 PM	HBO

Cast

Eva Longoria Parker	...	Kate
Paul Rudd	...	Henry
Lake Bell	...	Ashley
Jason Biggs	...	Dan
Lindsay Sloane	...	Chloe
Stephen Root	...	Sculptor
William Morgan Sheppard	...	Father Marks (as W. Morgan Sheppard)
Wendi McLendon-Covey	...	Lona
Ali Hillis	...	Karen
Deborah Theaker	...	Mary
Natalia Jaroszyk	...	Bride (as Natalia Safran)
Andy Kreiss	...	Groom
Ben Livingston	...	Minister
Jack Conley	...	Cab Driver
Kali Rocha	...	Angel

Also Known As:

Ghost Bitch (USA) (working title)
How I Met My Boyfriend's Dead Fiancée (USA) (working title)
Over My Dead Body (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content and language.

Runtime:

USA:95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Ireland:12A | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:6 | Malaysia:U | Hong Kong:IIA | Finland:K-11 | Brazil:10 | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Church of the Angels - 1100 Avenue 64, Pasadena, California, USA

Company:

Gold Circle Films

Trivia:

WILHELM SCREAM: When Dan slips and falls in the kitchen, you can hear a Wilhelm scream after his initial panic.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the opening credits, almost all of the photos taken of Eva Longoria Parker and Paul Rudd are obviously fake (one person's face put into existing photo).

Quotes:

Ashley: I hope you don't mind me asking, but how, um... How did it happen?
Henry: She was crushed by an angel and as sad as I am, I do appreciate the irony

Movie Connections:

References "The Muppet Show" (1976)

Soundtrack:

Love

Entertaining. Isn't that what these films are meant to be?

By now, we all know the formula of a romantic comedy. The basic framework revolves around a guy meeting a girl, a love triangle, a little white lie and an event that causes them to split before the soggy finale where they kiss and make up, living happily ever after. If you go into a rom-com expecting much more or something that deviates from that path, you'll probably be disappointed. After bar setting movies like When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless In Seattle and Four Weddings and a Funeral, the constant stream of lazy efforts in recent years can cause one to be seriously jaded by the genre. So it is with this skepticism and desire to switch off my brain, that I pop Over Her Dead Body into my DVD player. It is apparent from a mere glance at the synopsis that this film will not last long in my memory, change my life or be any kind of profound filmic experience for me, but I was entertained. The script was amusing, the delivery from the four leads (Bell, Rudd, Biggs, Longoria) precise and well timed. The premise was an interesting spin on an oft used plot device.

So what's not to like? An entertaining, funny and endearing romantic comedy. At best, a competent entry into the genre, quite a way ahead of most of it's type and at worst, a movie that feels like a sitcom without a laughter track. As someone who likes sitcoms, that isn't a particularly bad thing. In a nutshell, you could do a lot worse.