ranters and ravers

Pity Poor A.O. Scott As the Dog Days of February Arrive

Photo illustration: Getty Images, iStockphoto

It’s February! Or, as the movie studios call it, Shit-Dumping Season! Such is the paucity of non-laughable films appearing today that even the Times’ estimable A.O. Scott must take one for the team and review Over Her Dead Body, the horrifically titled (if you take it literally) romantic comedy starring Eva Longoria as a meddlesome ghost. To his credit, Scott does his best to grit his teeth and just enjoy the enthusiastic molestation New Line commits upon the art of cinema:

For what it is — a romantic comedy about the rivalry between a jealous ghost and a flaky psychic for the love of a veterinarian — Over Her Dead Body is not bad.

If you think that’s disheartening, just watch the Times’ Movie Minute video. Poor A.O. sounds thoroughly defeated and miserable, as if his soul is dying a little. “I suppose I shouldn’t expect much better,” he sighs over video of the film’s stars spilling mustard all over themselves, “but Over Her Dead Body doesn’t really come alive.” Someone give that guy a hug, or at least a Simpsons DVD set.

A Guy, His Psychic and a Jealous Ghost [NYT]
Movie Minute: Over Her Dead Body [NYT]

Pity Poor A.O. Scott As the Dog Days of February Arrive