Ghosts Can't Do It

Well, I watched the whole movie over a 4 day period. This movie cant hold my attention. No matter how beautiful Bo Derek is, this movie DID NOT WORK... I dont even get it?? I was totally confused, the plot was terrible, as was the acting, and Quinn as Dereks husband??? I cant understand the age difference... At least in rel life, John was a decent looking guy... Quinn was not. This movie was terrible, I place it on the bottom with Myra Breckinridge... I did nothing for me (except seeing Bo dance around the beach naked talking to the clouds... that was interesting... Seeing Bo can usually capture my attention and keep me into as movie "Change of Seasons" and "10" were both good, but this once flopped...

The Dereks did seem to struggle to find rolls for Bo after "10".

I used to work for a marine park in the Florida Keys. One day, the script for "Ghosts Can't Do It" was circulating among the trainers in the "fish house" where food was prepared for the dolphins. There was one scene where a -dolphin- supposedly propositions Bo (or Bo the dolphin), asking to "go make eggs." Reading the script, we -lauuughed-...

We did not end up doing any portion of this movie at our facility, although our dolphins -were- in "The Big Blue!"

This must have been very close to the end of Anthony Quinn's life. I hope he had fun in this film, as it certainly didn't do anything for his legacy.

"Ghost" did this kind of story better.

Of course, comparing "Ghost" to "Ghosts Can't Do It" is like comparing a banquet line to a compost heap.

As much as I like a good Bo Derek nude scene (for all the umpteen times I've seen them), here they're all just so... and I can't believe I'm saying this... BORING.

Yes, you heard me.

She gets naked, yes. She dances seductively in what John Derek must have thought was a clever variation on the same type of dance scene in "Flashdance". She strips down to nothing on the beach. Dips down into a hot tub, sans clothes. And blah blah blah....

But she just stands there. Yes, she stood there in her other movies, too. But it was the WAY she stood there that got to you, if you know what I mean, guys. Yeah, sure you do.

And let's not even get into what Anthony Quinn, Julie Newmar and Donald Trump are doing in a movie where everyone is more interested in seeing how Bo is going to get naked in the next scene.

Oh, I'm sure John had his own ideas of making Bo the next Helen Hayes (snicker, snicker...), save for one big difference: BO CAN NOT ACT. Nudity. Standing around with her mouth partially open. If that were all acting were, then yes, Bo would already be the next Helen Hayes.

But here in the real world....

One star. Even I was bored by this one, and that's not easy to do with me. I'd give this one no stars but darn it, Bo, when you look at me with your mouth partially open....

With a Bo Derek movie, the audience get just what they expect. A paper thin plot and a few shots of Mrs. Derek in no clothes. 'Ghosts can't do it' is just that. The first fifteen minutes is ordinary TV drama, as long as Scott [Anthony Quinn] is still alive. He is a very good actor with long experience in a lot of different roles, but it seems as even a famous actor need to work just for money sometimes. Bo Derek is the opposite, always playing a strikingly handsome young woman with or without clothes. The movie is a complete waste of time. If you want to see Quinn, rent Lawrence of Arabia or La Strada. If you want to see nude women or bad acting, rent any porno movie.

"Ghosts Can't Do It" has the distinction of winning the Razzie Award for the Worst Picture of 1990. This isn't surprising, as Bo Derek has won three Razzies for Worst Actress (including one for this film). For this reason, I decided to watch this movie.

When the story begins, Kate (Derek) and Scott (Anthony Quinn) are desperately in love despite the huge age difference between them. However, when Scott has a heart attack and is unable to make love to her, he takes his own life. Out of the blue, however, he's magically able to talk with Kate and carries on a detached relationship with her. As for the audience, they can also hear him and see his giant head floating on the screen...an odd effect to say the least.

Because Scott and Katie cannot touch each other, Scott devises a plan. Despite having no assurance whatsoever that it will work, he wants Katie to make love to other guys so he can inhabit their bodies and experience her. Later, he even suggests they arrange for a studly guy to die so Scott can take over his body...and the duo can live happily ever after.

The plot is silly and it seems like it's all just an excuse for Derek to take off her clothes again and again. While she is not much of an actress, she at least handled the nude bits well...and the film is sort of like a soft core porno film with too much story.

So is it any good? Certainly not. It's an embarrassing role for Quinn...he is capable of doing better and you wonder WHY he accepted this role. The same can be said for veteran actor Don Murray. I assume both must have needed the money. The plot is stupid, the dialog is even stupider and Derek, though gorgeous, brings nothing more to the movie. A silly, misguided movie.