DVD Release Date: May 6, 2008
Theatrical Release Date: February 1, 2008
Rating: PG-13 (for sexual content and language)
Genre: Comedy, fantasy, romance
Run Time: 110 minutes
Director: Jeff Lowell
Actors: Eva Longoria Parker, Paul Rudd, Lake Bell, Jason Biggs, Lindsay Sloane, Stephen Root, William Morgan Sheppard, Wendi McLendon Covey, Ali Hillis
With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, women everywhere will be searching for chick-flicks on the marquis … especially romantic comedies about weddings gone awry, love triangles, crazy blind dates and the like.
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But before you pay ten bucks for Over Her Dead Body, keep in mind that this one is “all Hollywood” in its worldview, with an implausible premise and a boatload of questionable issues.
The movie begins with bride-to-be Kate (Eva Longoria Parker) pushing around all the caterers and making controlling demands on those she’s hired for her beautiful outdoor wedding. When she sees that the ice sculpture she ordered is actually a wingless angel, she throws a fit and the heavy statue falls right on her, killing her instantly.
She ends up in a sort-of holding area for heaven, where a woman tells her that she’s not quite ready for eternity and must go back to earth for a while. Kate pitches another grouchy fit, and the lady disappears before she can finish her instructions. Soon Kate finds herself back on earth as a quasi-ghost who can walk through people and buildings.
Meanwhile, her veterinarian fiancée, Henry (Paul Rudd) has been cajoled by his sister, Chloe (Lindsay Sloane), into seeing a psychic. Chloe hopes that Ashley (Lake Bell) can bring Henry some word from heaven, or some message from Kate that will comfort his grieving heart. She gives Kate’s diary to Ashley and encourages the psychic to lie about things she’s “getting” from beyond. At first Ashley says no, but eventually she agrees.
It just so happens that Ashley is also a part-time caterer, spending most of her time with her gay best friend, Dan (Jason Biggs). She begins the psychic sessions with Henry in her living room (while Dan is burning things in the kitchen), and she increasingly notices how fun and handsome her new client is. But just as she sets her sights on him, Ashley is shocked beyond belief to get a visit from Kate, who believes she has found her mission: to protect Henry at all costs.
In very comical ways, Kate threatens Ashley and demands that she never see Henry again. At first Ashley is intimidated, but then she decides to fully engage in the mortal-vs.-immortal contest for Henry’s affections. The results are often hilarious.