Ryan Reynolds can’t catch a break. All his movies recently bombed somehow. RIPD is no different except that this has been touted as an odd version of Men in Black without the black man which could only mean it can only be half as good.
Ryan Reynolds plays a dirty (or just slightly smudged) cop who died at the hands of his partner. Somehow upon his death, he got recruited into an afterlife police force called Rest in Peace Department, a poor play on the abbreviation: Something. Something. PD. I don’t get it.
Anyway in that weird substitute for heaven, he meets up with an old Western sheriff, Roycephus Pulsipher played by Jeff Bridges. Together they police the living world, ridding the streets of bad spirits, but the catch is they have to be disguised so as to not mix their new job with their past lives. Jeff Bridges is disguised as a hot blonde bombshell while Ryan is perceived as an old Chinese man by the living populace.
You would think that the premise of the movie would fuel it all the way to the finish line but it doesn’t. The evil souls actually look like the aliens in MIB. Kevin Bacon’s villainous acting was plain bad. Ryan Reynolds was forgettable. The plot was altogether uninspiring with overuse of CG.
But the things that sticks out are the jokes. The show’s premise allows for the most original and hilarious comedy. One was about Jeff Bridges defending his character’s full name.
Jeff: Call me Roycephus.
Ryan: Why don’t I call you something short like Roy.
Jeff: Or Cephus.
Other than the jokes, there really isn’t much going for this movie. Bad reviews and poor marketing has scared away potential audiences. Although it feels awkward laughing alone in a nearly empty cinema, I would grace this with a 5/10.
Ryan Reynolds plays a dirty (or just slightly smudged) cop who died at the hands of his partner. Somehow upon his death, he got recruited into an afterlife police force called Rest in Peace Department, a poor play on the abbreviation: Something. Something. PD. I don’t get it.
Anyway in that weird substitute for heaven, he meets up with an old Western sheriff, Roycephus Pulsipher played by Jeff Bridges. Together they police the living world, ridding the streets of bad spirits, but the catch is they have to be disguised so as to not mix their new job with their past lives. Jeff Bridges is disguised as a hot blonde bombshell while Ryan is perceived as an old Chinese man by the living populace.
You would think that the premise of the movie would fuel it all the way to the finish line but it doesn’t. The evil souls actually look like the aliens in MIB. Kevin Bacon’s villainous acting was plain bad. Ryan Reynolds was forgettable. The plot was altogether uninspiring with overuse of CG.
But the things that sticks out are the jokes. The show’s premise allows for the most original and hilarious comedy. One was about Jeff Bridges defending his character’s full name.
Jeff: Call me Roycephus.
Ryan: Why don’t I call you something short like Roy.
Jeff: Or Cephus.
Other than the jokes, there really isn’t much going for this movie. Bad reviews and poor marketing has scared away potential audiences. Although it feels awkward laughing alone in a nearly empty cinema, I would grace this with a 5/10.
