Gervais fails to carry ‘Ghost Town’

Cert 12

Comedy/Romance

During a routine colonoscopy, middle-aged British dentist Bertram Pincus (Ricky Gervais) reacts badly to the anaesthetic and his heart stops beating.

Thankfully, hospital staff revive him on the operating table but Bertram wakes with a strange gift.

He can now see and hear the spirits of the recently departed, including Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), who begs Bertram to intervene in his widow, Gwen’s (Tea Leoni), marriage plans.

The misanthropic dentist unexpectedly feels an emotional connection to another human being and he wrestles with his growing attraction to Gwen.

With a different leading man, ‘Ghost Town’ could have been a quirky and charming romantic comedy. Regrettably, with Gervais on board, the project becomes a limp one-man show — the award-winning star of ‘The Office’ and ‘Extras’ simply doesn’t have the charisma to carry an entire film.

Star Rating: 2/5