Christopher B. Landon’s latest film sees him shift from the ‘(insert ‘80s movie) but it’s a slasher’ prompting that’s been part of his last handful of releases, but only somewhat. He’s still quite indebted to the nostalgic films of that era; it’s just that the specific horror genre flavouring is different.
In this case, we have a haunted house story that plays out like a cross between Beetlejuice and E.T., showing Kevin (Jahi Winston) moving into a new house and making friends with ghost Ernest (David Harbour), while Kevin’s father (Anthony Mackie) and brother (Niles Fitch) try to make bank off of Ernest on social media. And honestly, the entertainment value varies quite a bit depending on what is being pulled from.
When it’s trying to be an update on Beetlejuice, replacing the yuppie pretentiousness of the Deetz family with modern viral narcissism, it’s frankly a bit annoying. The core idea of ‘normal people’ exploiting the Other (a common fixture in Tim Burton’s work) is so familiar at this point that seeing it played out this straight just made me cringe.
It probably doesn’t help that, unlike Beetlejuice’s interior framing from the point-of-view of the ghosts in question, this is strictly exterior with the main plot being about trying to figure out who Ernest even is, since he doesn’t remember anything about what happened to him. It gives a voyeuristic tinge to the narrative that cuts into the well-meaning framing of Ernest as someone who shouldn’t have to deal with this circus, not should Kevin have to deal with his only friend being treated like a parlour trick. The real-world ramifications of Ernest’s existence being made public are also pretty superficial, sticking solely to the social media side of things with trending topics and inane viral challenges, and seemingly forgetting that, y’know, factual evidence of an afterlife would be a pretty big frickin’ deal.
However, when it sticks more to the ‘child and their high-concept companion’ framework of something like E.T., the film does hit its stride. The more it focuses on Ernest and his growing friendship with Kevin, the more that the main thematic idea of parents prioritising their own desires over those of their children manages to ring true. Jahi Winston does well as the entry point character for the audience, being brought along for yet another relocation and generally feeling disconnected from everyone, including his own family.
But it’s with David Harbour that the film manages to genuinely impress, as he conveys a lot of emotion and charm without the assistance of spoken dialogue. As we learn more about him (and the film inches towards a finale that is very Christopher B. Landon by this point), there’s a real sense of connection with him and wanting to see him get through this tidal wave of social-media-come-latelys and government spooks.
When it’s all put together, it’s mainly just alright. It has its irritating moments, the narrative focus feels like it’s being pulled in too many different directions to full cohere to a single idea, and even when it digs deeper into its own ideas, it doesn’t end up saying enough to ultimately justify the lengthy run-time. But there’s still fun to be had with it, primarily when it focuses on Kevin and the titular Ghost, and there’s a solid foundation of understanding of its myriad of ‘80s-era influences that helps its more impactful moments work, even if the film could stand to have more of them than it does.
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