Ghost Team

Ghost Team

2016, PG-13, 83 min. Directed by Oliver Irving. Starring Jon Heder, David Krumholtz, Justin Long, Amy Sedaris, Melonie Diaz, Paul W. Downs, Tom Schiller.

REVIEWED By Josh Kupecki, Fri., Sept. 9, 2016

A group of misfits band together to investigate mysterious goings-on at an old farmhouse in the utterly unfunny Ghost Team. Louis (Heder) and his sad-sack friend Stan (Krumholtz) are trying to escape their humdrum lifestyles (Louis from his dead-end job at a copy store, Stan from the depression caused by his fiancée’s departure). The two find kindred spirits in Zak (Downs), Ross (Long), Victoria (Sedaris), and Ellie (Diaz). The makeshift Scooby-Doo team piles into a van to hunt some ghosts but ends up uncovering a much more banal situation.

Ghost Team is, on the one hand, an increasingly stale parody of the paranormal television subgenre of reality shows, and on the other, a tired tale of empowerment, as each character has his or her “moment” to shine. The script is a first draft, the jokes are puerile, and everything is ludicrously telegraphed. The film is a perpetual series of build-ups that end up going nowhere. Even with the short running time, Ghost Team slogs along for an eternity. Avoid this unfortunate misfire at all costs.

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KEYWORDS FOR THIS FILM

Ghost Team, Oliver Irving, Jon Heder, David Krumholtz, Justin Long, Amy Sedaris, Melonie Diaz, Paul W. Downs, Tom Schiller

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