Ghost Dad (1990)

Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Leaving aside Bill Cosby's recent run-ins the with the law, I must say I've never found him the least bit amusing. Maybe it's an American 'thing' mixing slapstick, sentimentality and someone talking like they have a mouth full of toilet paper. Who knows... But for whatever reason, he was the highest actor on American TV for years, and was one of the first true black superstars of the media age. You may wonder why these impressive credentials didn't help him develop a more lucrative movie career... Until you sit through something as terrible as 'Ghost Dad', of course.Dear oh dear, what WERE his agent and him thinking when they flicked through THIS script and decided it would be worth making? Having already starred in a string of flops at the cinema, Cosby NEEDED this, as a last throw of the dice, to be a hit. Needless to say... He came up snake eyes, and he never did have the popularity on the big screen he enjoyed on the far smaller one. Not a great loss, in my view.To start with, his character in the movie is HORRIBLE. He spends all his time at work (to the extent where he reads bedtime stories for his youngest on cassette, forgets all their birthdays and can't even remember each child's name...) so we instantly hate him off the bat. When he DOES join the regions of the undead, the director seems to make up the rules for if he can be seen in daylight, whether he can touch solid objects or not and what kind of powers he has as a spook as he goes along. There is NO consistency here... Aside from the dreadful attempts at comedy and the non-performances from all involved.And just when you think things couldn't get ANY worse... It pulls out the most pathetic deus ex machina of an ending you'll EVER likely see. How the screenwriter scribbled this crap down with a straight face I'll never know. At least he probably laughed more than the poor, poor audience. This is truly a film as dead on arrival as it's protagonist... The difference no-one would try to bring it back from the afterlife. 2/10

Welcome to one of Cosby's few big-screen efforts. It is always in people's nature to put down great things and to nit-pick or sometimes just be plain mean. No matter what anyone says, this is not only an eye-popping cinematic treat, but one of the greatest stories ever put on celluloid. Whether we like the film, or not, one has to recognize the greatest achievement, perhaps, of the creative talent of the people working in the movie industry. Never in my life have I laughed so hard. The writing is meant to make us all laugh and succeeds. This film was nearly perfect, but sadly still not made for everyone. I award it 7 out of 10.

Okay, yes it has an implausible plot and the story line is totally cheesy. Having said that, however,it's also a very cute movie with a nice lesson in it. I've noticed that some of the other reviewers seem disappointed that this movie isn't an intellectual marvel. It's not meant to be. Sometimes movies are just supposed to be entertaining without having to be analyzed. This is one of those movies. Bill Cosby is as usual a comedic genius. I never get tired of watching him because he plays the father role very well. The supporting child actors are cute, most especially the youngest daughter. This movie is a good one for family viewing. I suggest you at least rent it, pop some popcorn, and sit with the family and enjoy it.

I have to admit that I don't know Bill Cosby's work too well, but "Ghost Dad" is pretty funny. Cosby plays Elliot Hopper, who gets in a car wreck and is rendered a spirit who only shows up in the darkness. Much of the movie involves Elliot getting in and out of goofy situations; the telephone scene was neat.True, this movie doesn't really have much artistic value, but it's an OK way to pass time. Having seen Ian Bannen in "Waking Ned Devine", I never would have imagined him also starring in a movie like this (despite the fact that this one was released several years earlier). Sidney Poitier has turned in some interesting work as a director. Worth seeing, if only once.Messing up the Spaghetti O's...