The trailer would want to have you believe that this is another "Ghost", or "All of me" or "Heavens can wait". Surprise! It's none of the above. If you really want to make up one of those tediously unimaginative summary lines of "what meet what", call it "Sleeping Beauty meets The Constant Gardener" and that would be the closest you can get.
Strip the plot to the bare bones, it's one of the most told tales, of a workaholic young woman's discover of romance and love. Another surprise! But there is some originality in the plot, although I'm not quite prepared to swear that it has not been done before. A spirit in limbo trying to save her body in a coma provides interesting material. Some critics however make too much out of the issue of a patient's right to life, forgetting that it's only a necessary part of the plot and not intended to turn this light romance comedy into heavy social drama. The little twist in the end - that the person she falls in love with is the person whom someone originally wanted her to meet - is directly from the hugely successful Korean "My Sassy Girl".
The important thing about this genre is not really WHAT it is (provided that the plot is not too far-fetched) but HOW it is done. In general, the pace of this 90+ minute movie is fine, maybe dragging just a tad in the middle after the initial momentum has worn off but not a big flaw. Some of the scenes are beautifully done, particularly the rooftop scenes with the ethereal light. On acting, the inimitable John Heder from "Napoleon Dynamics" is a delight to watch. Underrated Ruffalo has turned in good performances before, in varied roles such as the flamboyant detective in "In the cut" and an everyday IT man in "Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind". Here, he employs a certain degree of minimalism to portray a heart-broken young widower. The star of "Just like heaven" is, of course, Reese Witherspoon. The more you watch her, the more you become aware of some of the shortcoming of Meg Ryan (such as being over-sappy at times) and Julia Roberts (such as the one-expression-suits-all approach).
Despite the misleading trailer, "Just like heaven" is not a remake of any of the ghost-linked romance comedies you've seen before, but has a character of its own a joy to watch.
Strip the plot to the bare bones, it's one of the most told tales, of a workaholic young woman's discover of romance and love. Another surprise! But there is some originality in the plot, although I'm not quite prepared to swear that it has not been done before. A spirit in limbo trying to save her body in a coma provides interesting material. Some critics however make too much out of the issue of a patient's right to life, forgetting that it's only a necessary part of the plot and not intended to turn this light romance comedy into heavy social drama. The little twist in the end - that the person she falls in love with is the person whom someone originally wanted her to meet - is directly from the hugely successful Korean "My Sassy Girl".
The important thing about this genre is not really WHAT it is (provided that the plot is not too far-fetched) but HOW it is done. In general, the pace of this 90+ minute movie is fine, maybe dragging just a tad in the middle after the initial momentum has worn off but not a big flaw. Some of the scenes are beautifully done, particularly the rooftop scenes with the ethereal light. On acting, the inimitable John Heder from "Napoleon Dynamics" is a delight to watch. Underrated Ruffalo has turned in good performances before, in varied roles such as the flamboyant detective in "In the cut" and an everyday IT man in "Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind". Here, he employs a certain degree of minimalism to portray a heart-broken young widower. The star of "Just like heaven" is, of course, Reese Witherspoon. The more you watch her, the more you become aware of some of the shortcoming of Meg Ryan (such as being over-sappy at times) and Julia Roberts (such as the one-expression-suits-all approach).
Despite the misleading trailer, "Just like heaven" is not a remake of any of the ghost-linked romance comedies you've seen before, but has a character of its own a joy to watch.