*This may sound like I'm choosing a scary movie for Halloween week, but anyone who knows me knows better. I have never seen a scary movie, and I never will. This Ghost Town is most definitely a comedy!
I noticed it was on Prime, so I watched it again yesterday... SO funny! I can't help thinking of my former BFF every time I watch this movie. We saw it back in 2008 when it was in theaters, and I don't think we've ever laughed harder than that, so that's a fun memory! =) There are things about the bittersweet ending that make me think about her, too, but I won't dwell on that here...
In this movie, the hilarious Ricky Gervais plays a dentist who is not a people person. He is cynical and easily irritated by other people's stupidity. He hates making small talk, and he often tunes people out and stays in his own little world. (So we have some things in common. lol)
During a routine medical procedure, he dies and is brought back to life... then when he wakes up, he is able to see and talk to ghosts, all of whom are normal-looking people stuck on earth because they have "unfinished business." Realizing he can see them, the ghosts all seek his help to communicate with their loved ones who can no longer see or hear them.
He reluctantly and awkwardly forms a friendship with Gwen (Tea Leoni), the widow of Frank (played by Greg Kinnear). Through the course of the movie, you learn that he (Ricky) went through a painful breakup that caused him to close off, and he rarely bothers talking about it because he believes his story to be boring and ordinary. Gwen tells him: "Your story, it's not boring and ordinary... we just get the one life, you know? Just one. You can't live someone else's or think it's more important just because it's more dramatic. What happens matters. Maybe only to us, but it matters."
I like that. It matters to God, too, so don't belittle your own heart or dismiss your story!
"Pain throws your heart to the ground;
Love turns the whole thing around.
No, it won't all go the way it should,
But I know the heart of life is good."
~The Heart of Life, John Mayer
(The movie also has a pretty good soundtrack! ❤)
Eventually, he (Ricky's character) has an epiphany and realizes that it's not the ghosts but the people who are living who have unfinished business and desperately need closure. So he softens a bit and begins to listen and communicate and help the people who are still here to understand how their loved ones who died felt about them, to forgive themselves and release any false guilt, to let go of bitterness and anger, to accept the death and find healing and move forward.
It's a short montage where all of that happens, but it's the most heartwarming and meaningful part of the movie! He realizes that one of his dental patients whom he regularly tuned out as he found her obnoxiously talkative (always telling stories about her son and his dad) -- he finally understands that she's a grieving widow raising a young son who misses his dad terribly. And that perhaps she's so talkative because the person who once listened to all her stories is gone now.
It's a great reminder to be gentle and kind with people, even those who tend to annoy you. Watching that scene made me think about this post, which is so perfectly spot on (click title for link): Everyone Around You is Grieving. Go Easy.
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