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Straight romances have a tough time reaching over to male audiences. This is part of the stroke of genius behind director Jerry Zucker and Oscar winning writer Bruce Joel Rubin’s GHOST. The film balances between romance, comedy and thriller elements, keeping the narrative easily accessible to both genders. It’s a grand fantasy romance wrapped around a crime mystery, supported by a great comic relief character.

Sam Wheat (Patrick Swayze, DIRTY DANCING) and Molly Jensen (Demi Moore, ST. ELMO’S FIRE) have just moved in together. Between their relationship and his new promotion, he is worried that his life is going too well. One night, a botched mugging leads to his death. But as is the case with ghosts, they have unfinished business on Earth and Sam is determined to get to the bottom of his murder, which doesn’t seem like a simple robbery when the mugger Willie Lopez (Rick Aviles, THE STAND) turns up at his apartment. He tries to contact Molly and his best friend Carl Bruner (Tony Goldwyn, THE LAST SAMURAI) but can’t warn them. He eventually goes to con artist psychic Oda Mae Brown (Whoopi Goldberg, THE COLOR PURPLE), who ends up being the real thing, for help.
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Check Out the Trailer

I saw Susanne Bier’s original 2005 Danish version of this story in 2007 after this version had been announced. It was a powerful experience. In my review of the original I worried that the redux would amp up the melodrama. The premise of a wayward brother falling for the wife of his presumed dead brother is melodramatic in nature, but Bier masterfully played the material with honesty. While the American version does play for more drama, it does so with solid performances and steady clean direction style.

Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire, SPIDER-MAN) is a captain in the marines who is about to be deployed again to Afghanistan. Right before he leaves, he goes to pick up his brother Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal, DONNIE DARKO) from prison, where he had been serving for robbery. Sam’s wife Grace (Natalie Portman, CLOSER) and two daughters Isabelle (Bailee Madison, BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA) and Maggie (Taylor Geare, NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU) don’t want Sam to leave. Despite a prickly past, Tommy helps out Grace with the girls when Sam is believe to have been killed in battle. In reality, he and another soldier Joe Willis (Patrick Flueger, TV’s THE 4400) have been taken prisoner.
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