The Civil Dead

An exciting spin on undead beings, as it delineates the hardships of a deceased individual and, at the same time, the gradually unfolding events correlate to a living person and that propagates an unusual brotherhood that prospers amidst some unlikeliest circumstances.

This was nothing too profound, though the story did attempt to touch upon some deeper stuff and tried its best to turn it into something that may culminate in introspection, but it couldn't.

To me, it felt more like a comfort feature, movies you tune in with no preconceived expectations at all, you seek to take pleasure in the ride, and in that case, it would suffice, I reckon.

P. S. I wouldn't say I liked the ending, though. It was so cruel!

When his wife goes away for a weekend, "Clay" (Clay Tatum) is quite happy just dragging the mattress in front of the television and beering out! He's a photographer by trade and wandering around the city he encounters "Whit" (Whitmer Thomas) whom he knew years earlier. Their's is an uneasy friendship, but he is polite enough and the two spend a day together that concludes in the most unlikely of revelations! It appears that "Whit" isn't quite what he seems! Of course scepticism abounds, but a conversation with his neighbour confirms the worst - nobody else can see "Whit"! What now ensues are a fun series of increasingly exasperating escapades as the former man finds his new gadfly pal persistently more and more annoying and demanding whilst he just wants to get on with his life - especially when his wife returns! Perhaps a few days in a remote mountain cabin for the two men might provide a solution? Although it's really dialogue heavy and the scenarios do repeat themselves a few times, this is still an entertaining film with plenty of quirkiness and two engaging performances from the lead characters who try to avoid the obvious "Scooby-Do" style stereotype spooks. The end of the film rather entertainingly explains the beginning, too. No, you'll never remember it afterwards, but it's quite an enjoyable tale of the geek and his beast.

This movie was such a breath of fresh air, not just to the comedy genre but to the entire industry as well. What I liked the most about this film was that the director was generous in showing the entire experience of the characters. The production's 70's vibe and feel complemented really well with the theme. One cannot help but admire the friendship that the two characters. It seemed at the beginning that these two would be inseparable towards the end, until an unexpected twist took place. And the attitude of one of the characters served as clue to the occurrence of the said twist. It was entertaining and funny. A must-see for everyone.

A photographer finds the unwanted attentions of a ghost a bit much to handle.

Engaging buddy movie that has a similar feel to Sideways in its binding together of an odd couple. The principal actors are themselves the creators, so they carry this off perfectly in low-key style, and yet generate a mounting sense of jeopardy.

The cleverest element is in maintaining the ghostliness in the 'real' world, from the moment of the appartition's sly arrival and on through his lack of impact on the world - the stunt in the middle of the highway was particularly impressive.

And yet the ghost does have an impact during his moments of rage, so the ending felt premature: even as my brain was racing ahead to the final showdown, it was all over without uncovering how far each character would go to get his way. And the paedophile reference wasn't followed up - or maybe I missed it.

The performances are excellent, pace is good. LA looks its usual bleached-out self. And the music is pleasant.

Overall: Engaging slackers story slacked off in the end.

The description does not do this movie justice. It makes it bland. The trailer is what made me watch this movie immediately. A guy down on rent meets a friend who turns out to be a ghost. That's THE hook of the movie. That's what got me interested. I actually stopped watching the trailer once the ghost part dropped because I was hooked.

And the rest of the movie explores that. How do they get along? Do they fight? Does the ghost help him? How'd he become a ghost? How does having a ghost buddy complicate your life?

The acting is great. It's funny. It's even sad. Love the camera work, too. The script feels polished. I wound up enjoying this far more than I expected.

I even like the ending (which seems to be very controversial). But I'll say the ending is a bold choice and absolutely memorable. In fact, I even understand the ending and respect the character's decisions decision, given what the movie set up earlier.