RIPD

Ryan Reynolds is a cop whose partner is Kevin Bacon. They go on a bust or a raid or some policey thing and Ryan bites it with a shotgun to the chest (not a spoiler, happens pretty much right away). Once dead ryan floats up out his body, or climbs out, I can't remember, and meets the lady who I always think is Marissa Tomei but clearly isn't. Fake Marissa then tells Ryan he has been recruited to police dead people who are still hanging around the real world. His partner is a near incomprehensible Jeff Bridges who is a veteran dead cop with an attitude to boot. They then go about trying to solve a very thin plotline which may or may not involve Kevin Bacon and some deado's (yes thats what they call dead people who cause mischief).

The premise of this film is pretty damn good actually; once dead, cops who have led a sketchy lifestyle are recruited by limbo to control the spirits who are making a complete nuisance of themselves, sounds good right? How can we make this film even more appealing then? Casting you say? O.K. I'll give you Ryan Reynolds who when he puts his mind to it can act, Kevin Bacon who is awesome and Jeff Bridges who steals pretty much every film he is in whether he is the lead or not. Now all we need is a coherent plotline to hold all these things together and we are golden, shame this is where they drop the ball then. It's a very thin plot that doesn't really hold together well at all, not only that the Basil Exposition explanation moments don't actually explain things. Ryan is far too accepting of his fate and drags himself through the film with a visible lack of enthusiasm and energy. Why cast him in the lead and then not have him run his mouth, that's what Ryan does for Christ's sake. Jeff is clearly enjoying himself as is Kevin but neither of them are able to convince you to have as much fun as they are. It isn't to say that the film is terrible beyond words it is just really, really boring. The last thing to say is the obvious comparison with Men In Black, which a sensible film maker may try to steer away from but in this they may as well have had Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in the leads and the deado's couldn't look more like some of the aliens Will and Tommy fight. Put some effort in people, films don't make themselves.

Verdict: 2/5 (because that is the most boring of all scores)