Although R.I.P.D. (rated PG-13) is obviously intended to be a not-too-distant cousin to the popular Men in Black, it unfortunately falls far short of this lofty goal. Instead of launching into a fast-paced and exciting, cohesive adventure, this special-effects action-comedy just doesn’t get off the ground. The movie stars Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds, who are entertaining actors. The film is directed by Robert Schwentke, who previously directed Red, but he fails to bring the promising components of this production together to fulfill its potential.
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R.I.P.D. opens on July 19th along with another Ryan Reynolds film, Turbo, in which he provides an animated character’s voice. Apparently R.I.P.D. was barely given an advance screening for critics and with stiff competition at the box office for theatergoers, this film will probably not remain at the cinema very long. It might fare better on cable.
In the film, Nick (Reynolds) is a Boston policeman who is murdered by his corrupt partner Hayes (Kevin Bacon). As Nick travels into the afterlife very bitter at his former partner’s betrayal, he learns that he is wanted by the R.I.P.D., a group of deceased law enforcement officers who consider it their mission to prevent the dead from rising up to be with the living. Nonetheless, despite the honor of being selected for membership into the R.I.P.D., Nick is still angry at his former partner. This is exacerbated by the partner to whom Nick is assigned, Roy (Bridges), who doesn’t like newbies.
Like Men in Black, R.I.P.D. is adapted from a comic book and, in both, a young rookie joins a veteran to battle bizarre beings to save the world. Moreover, there is a pervasive attitude held by the two dead cops along with a healthy dose of grotesquely evil villains and slapstick humor. The similarities continue throughout the movie but at every point of comparison, R.I.P.D. suffers. The movie often disappoints with strained dialog, a dull story,while the humor and action sequences are altogether missing. R.I.P.D., relative to Men in Black, seems to lack the organization and structure that binds and gels the characters to the plot and all of the bells and whistles that come with a fantasy, sci-fi experience. As such, R.I.P.D. is a loud and colorful collection of sounds and images, but not much more than that.
