Heart Condition

Hollywood has been exploited this thematic buddy comedy where the living interacts with dead ones countless times, likewise GHOST, MY BOYFRIEND'S BACK, DEAD HEAT, 18 AGAIN just to name a few, this time shorty-fat-sloppy cop Bob Hoskins that used to be eat crap food, smoking hard and also drinking while pursuing a black lawyer Denzel Washington in service of an infamous pimp-gangster who has his former girlfriend Chloe Webb as prostitute, due his bad health behavior and strenuous job allied a mental strain he ends up at hospital on heat attack, guess is the heart donor, yes nothing less the fancy black lawyer Washington, dead by suspicious circumstances.

Upon learning such outrageous news the bigoted cop going mad than never, now nolens volens Bob has to dealing with Washington's shadow wherever he goes, worst such ghost demands a help to find out a clue that might lead the slippery pimp in the jail, in return he offers an aid to get back his naïve girlfriend, nonetheless everything went upside down when the jealous cop discover that his beloved Chloe has a little child of the womanizer Washington, well it's an average comedy, somehow the prearranged formula did work out plenty, although nothing despicable whatsoever.

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First watch: 1999 / How many: 2 / Source: TV-DVD / Rating: 6.25.

You get the feeling, right from the opening images, this is a too serious film to be a comedy. I don't think I laughed at anything, except two things, and I'm not really sure if they were, that they were from this movie. Only a couple of things manage to carry this movie off, favorably. It's definitely the chemistry between two great actors + a great actress, sorely very underused. Bigoted cop, Hoskins playing the role to a nice tee, suffers a major heart attack, after years of eating those fast foods, we so much love. He has a transplant from a dead guy, Washington. Coincidentally, it's the slick lawyer of a former girlfriend/prostitute (the versatile Webb) he's been tailing. And guess what, after surviving the heart attack, he reappears, only for Hoskins's eyes, where he implores this cop, now re-assigned to desk duty, and a strict diet, to him find the killers, he fell afoul of. Denzel is perfectly suited for his role, where we are reminded of just how good an actor he is. Webb, an actress I like, is just as good, looking beautiful as Hoskins's girl, who has a secret of her own. The film doesn't work as a comedy, despite some cute dialogue of Washington, and some mad antics from Hoskins's parading as a nutso. Still as an entertaining crime adventure film, it works, mainly from it's contributing performances, where as an end treat, we have that great song by Bonnie Raitt It also again, raises that issue of health, where like me, a too little number are adverse to eating the healthy stuff.

In Los Angeles, the call girls Crystal Gerrity (Chloe Webb) and Peisha (Eva LaRue) are partying with the prominent Senator Marquand (Frank R. Roach) that has an overdose. Crystal keeps the film with the photos she had taken and together with Peisha, she meets the lawyer Napoleon Stone (Denzel Washington) that is her boyfriend. Meanwhile the racist and bigoted cop Jack Moony (Bob Hoskins) sees Stone in his car with Crystal, who was his girlfriend, and chases him despite the protest of his partner Harry Zara (Ray Baker) that wants to be promoted to detective. However Jack has a heart attack but is saved by the heart of Stone, who had a car accident. Out of the blue, Jack sees the ghost of Stone that tells him that he was murdered. Jack is forced to team-up with Stone to investigate who killed him. But no one else can see Stone but him.

"Heart Condition" is a strange film that is lost between comedy with heavy hand and crime. The plot is funny is some moments and violent in others. There are holes in the story, like for example, how Jack would explain the large amount that he had spent. In addition, this character is non-likable. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Uma Estranha Condição" ("A Strange Condition")

An easy way to tick off Hoskins or Washington when you meet them may be your mentioning of this movie to them. I saw it at it's Los Angeles premiere and it contained ONE funny scene, which consisted of Hoskins trying to wrest a cheeseburger from spirit Washington. The movie was unfunny, racially offensive(I didn't appreciate the "endowment" comment that Washington made) and dramatically untrue in spots(if a mother just lost her son, would she be discussing her child's sexual habits with ANYONE, especially a stranger?).

It would have been a completely forgettable experience had it not been for Hoskins and Washington. They do not elevate this movie, for no one really could, but it sticks in the mind as a film that makes you wonder why these talented actors decided to do it in the first place.

People are comparing this to "Ghost" and that is indeed not without merit, however, for more enjoyable movies with ghosts, I would suggest "The Ghost Goes West" with Robert Donat and Eugene Pallette or for a more romantic turn, "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.

Not many shootouts no car chases but a few funny bits ok doesn't sound like the best film ever but its not that bad. Bob Hoskins plays detective Jack Mooney one night he has a heart attack and has to have a heart transplant sadly for him the heart of his worst enemy is the only one available.