Whether handled with solemnity or brazenness, the truth of our mortality and how we have no choice but to deal with it is an ever-present theme in almost every form of expression in every culture in the world.
Originally aired on HBO, “Dead Like Me” tackled this weighty subject with equal doses of dignity and humor, but like so many of the unfortunate characters in the show, it was struck down in its prime. The show was abruptly cancelled in 2004 after only two seasons, despite great disappointment and objection from the cast and crew and a huge outcry from fans.
The new direct-to-DVD movie, “Dead Like Me: Life After Death,” picks up five years after the events in the series, in an effort to bring a bit of closure to storylines the show’s writers had only begun to go into at the time of its cancellation. Sadly though, coming in a little under 90 minutes in length, “Life After Death” is not up to the task.
The focus of the original series was Georgia “George” Lass (Ellen Muth), a Seattle native who finds herself unceremoniously struck and blown to bits by a stray toilet- seat-turned-projectile from a decommissioned space station whose orbit had been altered to allow it to safely burn up in the atmosphere. Having only just recently turned 18, George is furious when approached by Rube Sofer (Mandy Patinkin) and informed that, instead of crossing over to the afterlife, she has been chosen to become the newest member of a team of Grim Reapers responsible for removing people’s souls just before they meet their fates and conducting them to the other side.
From this point, the show followed the day-to-day activities of George and her fellow Reapers, Roxy (Jasmine Guy), Mason (Callum Blue) and Daisy (Laura Harris) as they attempted to “live” life as the undead still interacting with the living.
In “Life After Death” most of the original cast is present with the obvious exception of the great Mandy Patinkin, who will forever be remembered as the swaggering Inigo Montoya in “The Princess Bride.” His absence is gracelessly explained away in the opening minutes and then is felt throughout the rest of the movie. His presence as the firm sometimes harsh, but still nurturing Rube, was central to the development of George from an awkward, cynical teenager to a more thoughtful young woman.
In his place, the audience gets Cameron Kane (Henry Ian Cusick from “Lost“), a svengali, or manipulative, corporate type who seems to spend more time delighting in putting George and the other Reapers against each other rather than maintaining the balance of life and death. Cameron functions as the main antagonist but barely has enough screen time for anyone to get a sense of his influence. His motivations are never explained and he is a caricature, as are all the other characters.
One of the main stories in the series was George’s relationship with her younger sister Regina (Britt McKillip), who everyone calls Reggie, at the time of her death. George had spent the majority of her youth ignoring Reggie and thus sees her stay in limbo as the perfect opportunity to make amends. She began to watch over her sister, trying to guide her and help her from a distance. The tension that came from wondering if George would slip up and reveal herself to Reggie gave the show some of its best emotional content — content that is missing in “Life After Death.” Again, the short runtime doesn’t allow for much time to be spent on this element of the story, and the manner in which Reggie’s reaction to a major event is handled just doesn’t ring true.
Critic’s Conclusion: The cast are all great and do the best they can with outrageously underwritten parts and a plot that goes nowhere. It’s very obvious that too much time has passed between the end of the series and the release of this new movie.
The actors don’t seem comfortable in these roles anymore and no longer possess the chemistry they displayed in the series. A few times the movie almost regains the quirkiness and genuine reverence for life that made the TV show so popular, but these moments are gone before the audience can even register their presence. The topics dealt with in the series are much too complex to be crammed into, not counting the end credits, a scant 83 minutes. Viewers would do better to watch the original series in its entirety. No “A” for effort here. C
The Independent Collegian > Arts&Life;
'Dead Like Me: Life After Death' not worth dying for
Published: Thursday, February 19, 2009
Updated: Thursday, February 19, 2009
1 comments
Thomas
Critics are idiots.
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