Whoopi, Swayze and Moore at their best

Rating: 6/10 (8 September 2008)

Ghost is a great supernatural thriller with a humorous edge. Sam Wheat and Molly Jensen (Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore) have decided to live together. He is an investment banker and she is a sculptress. Paul (Tony Goldwyn) works with Sam. Sam and Molly are truly in love, the only problem is Sam cannot say the three little words that Molly wants to hear. When she tells him she loves him, all he can say is "Ditto". Sam and Molly are refurbishing their dream house. They are enjoying their life together. After attending an Off-Broadway production of Macbeth, Molly decides it time to get married. They are mugged and Sam is shot and killed. His spirit starts to ascend but he cannot leave Molly, so he is stranded on Earth. Ghost Sam follows Molly around. But he has problems passing through doors. Sam gets trapped in the townhouse. When the door opens it is not Molly but the man who killed him. He realizes that his death was not random. Sam follows the killer home and discovers that Molly has something he wants. On his way back he notices a storefront Sister Oda Mae Brown Spiritual Adviser Contact The Dearly Departed. He is curious and enters. Oda Mae (Whoopi Goldberg) is a charlatan psychic but during her séance, she can hear everything Sam says. Sam realizes she has the gift and decides use her to warn Molly. Of course, Molly has a hard time believing Oda Mae. Even when she does believe, she still has doubts. Eventually, Sam finds out the whole truth. But the man behind the killing is getting desperate and he needs to get rid of the last witness, Molly. Jerry Zucker was most famous for Airplane and other spoofs he created with his brother. No one expected this level of sophistication in his direction. It starts out as a romance, then becomes a supernatural movie with comedic elements and ends up a mystery, which it was the whole time. Each handled with precision. Patrick Swayze had a series of hits but all the films would be considered light weight. This was his first acting triumph. Demi Moore was known for good performances in B Films. This was her first great performance in an A Film. Whoopi Goldberg took show business by storm. Mike Nichols discovered her on woman show and brought it to Broadway. This started her meteoric rise. Next Spielberg cast her in the lead of The Color Purple and Whoopi received a Best Actress Oscar Nomination. Since then, she was a star but never found another defining role. That is until Ghost. She takes Oda Mae Brown to a level even the writer and director did not expect. Her ability to go from high drama to slapstick without it looking unreal was perfection. I knew when I saw the film that this was her Oscar performance, and it was. Ghost has something for everyone in it. DVD EXTRAS: Documentary - Remembering the Magic - A look back on creation of this film. It is very interesting with great insights about the film and the makers.