Over Her Dead Body

OVER HER DEAD BODY is yet another entry in the Ghost-inspired subgenre of love stories. First-time feature director Jeff Lowell also obviously stole some of the tone of John Tucker Must Die (which he wrote) for the scenes between Ashley and Kate. The result is a lack of emotional connection with either woman. Would a ghost really spend all of her time annoying the psychic that her former fiancé is dating rather than to reach out to her loved one directly? And would a psychic who for the first time actually sees someone from the beyond act like a 16-year-old because the ghost's beloved is "cute"?

It's not that the movie is awful, it's just blah -- the kind of fluff that only very young girls would find romantic. There are occasional laughs, mostly due to Rudd's charming wit and a couple of slapstick scenes involving Biggs. The actresses are actually the weak spots, lacking the comedic chops to make their characters work. Both come off as petty and overly polished (especially in the case of Longoria Parker, who looks like she'd never appear in a film if every hair weren't perfectly in place and every form-fitting outfit sprayed on her curves). An ice-queen ghost and a shallow psychic-caterer? Neither seem to deserve the sweet vet.