Ghost Dad

1990 "He's been walking through doors. He's been falling through floors. He's been going through a lot lately, but he's still Dad."
4.4| 1h24m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 29 June 1990 Released
Producted By: Universal Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

Elliot Hopper, a widower with three children, is working on a business deal to get his family out of financial straits when he is suddenly killed in a taxi accident. With the aid of a paranormal researcher, Elliott attempts to complete the deal from the beyond, ensuring his family will be taken care of.

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Reviews

Marketic It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.
Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
Rexanne It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny
Fulke Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
gavin6942 Elliot Hopper (Bill Cosby) is a recently widowed father of three who has nearly bankrupted the family in attempts to save his lingering wife. Elliot is working on a business deal to get the family out of debt when he climbs into the taxicab of a maniacal Satanist.So, IMDb has this at 4.3 and allegedly it was on many critics' "worst of" lists, with Roger Ebert really taking a dislike. Well, Mr. Ebert, I am sorry but you were wrong this time. This film is not only funny, but has become a cultural benchmark.Yeah, it is far from perfect. The elder daughter is annoying... very annoying. But that Dana Ashbrook! And Jim Henson as a devil-worshiping cab driver? Priceless.
wrightiswright 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
Harriet Deltubbo 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.
erwan_ticheler SPOILERSSidney Poitier was a big star in the sixties and played in some really important and good movies of that time like "In the Heat of the Night" and "The Defiant Ones"."Ghost Dad" is to date his last direction and it is clear why.This movie is as empty as the head of George W. Bush.It can be forgiven because it is a fantasy comedy made for all ages but even then it isn't any good.Bill Cosby tries hard to save it but he doesn't manage.Both Cosby and Poitier were important black persons in showbizz in their time,Poitier in the sixties and Cosby in the 80's with his legendary sitcom "The Cosby Show" about a "white" black family.All these political and social problems are thrown overboard in this film and that's a shame cause both Cosby and Poitier are highly respected in Hollywood,maybe they could make a difference.Anyway about the film there's not much to say except that it is your typical fantasy story about a neglecting dad who comes to his senses as the movie goes on and of course it all ends well.Pretty mediocre entertainment when you expect nothing and when you don't want to think during the picture,otherwise:don't watch it. 5/10