The best thing, worst thing, and main thing about “R.I.P.D.” in about the time it takes to watch the trailer.
REVIEW TEXT
There’s a reason so many are saying this is a second rate knock off of Men in Black… primarily because this movie is a second rate knock off of Men in Black.
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R.I.P.D. which stands for the “Rest in Peace Division” stars Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges as an unlikely pair of soul hunters who are tasked with bringing in the deceased who might be up to no good. The pair find themselves quickly involved in a case that not only relates to Reynold’s characters recent demise, but also may just involve the entire world being in jeopardy. Boy does this movie feel like Men in Black. I mean seriously, the quirkiness, the design, the smart alec new guy with the cantankerous old guy. I mean even the office where they work looks like the MIB3 crew had just left it up after shooting so they decided to use it. But does that matter? Not to me, a great movie is great movie and this… is most certainly not a great movie. In fact, it’s pretty awful.
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There’s not really much to like here at all, I mean, I guess a couple of the action moments are fun and to be fair Ryan Reynolds is doing exactly what he’s being asked to do here and he’s bringing that same wit and charm I’ve loved since “Two Guys, A Girl, and a Pizza Place” , but I’d have to say the best thing is Jeff Bridges. His portrayal of the old west deputy finds that perfect balance between quirk and substance. Everything about his demeanor and delivery is interesting and made sitting through the nonsense regurgitated plot a bit more bearable.
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Speaking of which, wow. I mean I love Ghostbusters as much as the next guy, but isn’t this like the exact same plot? It would be a bit too spoilery to give details, but come on, get your own plot. Lets see, what else is vying for worst thing? Kevin Bacon’s hammy performance, sure. Trying to get laughs out of the same joke over a dozen times (he’s a gruff cowboy, but everyone sees him as a super model! Hilarious! the first time… maybe…) But no, the worst thing about RIPD had to be the CG effects on the dead souls true selves. When these guys turn, they almost look plastic, as if during the rendering process the filmmakers ran out of money to finish and said, oh well, I guess 81 percent rendered will have to do. Maybe, my eye was set to overly critical mode, but every time one of those monsters would come out of his shell, I found it laughable and so distracting i couldn’t focus on anything else.
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The truth is there isn’t much reason for anyone to check out R.I.P.D. Both the tone and plot feel like they’ve been done better elsewhere and the movie goes to it’s running gag well just a bit too often. Despite a really great performance from Jeff Bridges, RIPD lands as a C-.
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