Parents' Guide to Over Your Dead Body

Director Jorma Taccone's darkly comic thriller starts strong, with an intriguing premise and two talented comedic actors, but it falters once it devolves into a gore-fest. The first act of Over Your Dead Body benefits from a funny-but-violent Coen Brothers vibe, which Segel and Weaving pull off well. Jake Curran is especially amusing as Dan's clueless petty-criminal acquaintance, Henry, who's roped into being an accessory to the weekend's planned crimes. Even Olyphant, Lewis, and Jardine start out amusing as a trio of stereotypes—Pete's the brains, Todd's the brawn, and Allegra's their air-headed ally, blinded by her love for Pete. But once the two groups' storylines merge, the movie becomes a bloody, over-the-top mess, punctuated by only a few laugh-out-loud moments.

And other moments are flat-out disturbing, especially the prison-style rape contest. The fact that it's played for humor doesn't make it any less upsetting. Viewers should either be the target audience (dark comedy/horror/thriller fans) or familiar with The Trip to appreciate what kind of movie they're getting. Over Your Dead Body is darker and gorier than The War of the Roses or Mr. & Mrs. Smith, but considerably lighter than straight-up psychological horror like Speak No Evil or Funny Games (both adaptations of other violent European films). Because the movie's humor starts to fall flat once the story becomes one bloody encounter after another, the third act is somewhat of a slog, ultimately undermining an initially inventive, entertaining premise.