Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!
Pluskylang Great Film overall
Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Mabel Munoz Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?
Michael Ledo I was sitting on the edge of my seat during the whole movie as the plot got thicker and thicker. Adam Lange (Brosnan) is a former British Prime Minister who hires Ewan McGregor to finish ghost writing his memoirs. As the movie opens we see the first ghost writer's body wash up on the beach. Ewan is selected because he is politically stupid. After his initial meeting with a hiring group,(Jim Belushi) he is handed a manuscript to look at. On his way home, he is mugged and the manuscript stolen. He suspects it is because the robbers thought it was Adam Lange's memoirs.On his way to meet Lange, he sees on TV that Lange is being charged with war crimes for turning over suspected terrorists to the CIA for torture (Apparently only the US and Israel are allowed to do that under the UN charter). He finally meets Lange and his aides and wife (Ruth), only find out Ruth (Olivia Williams) dislikes Lange's aide (Kim Cattrall) and suspects they are having an affair. McGregor shifts gears from Ghostwriter to investigative journalist as he unravels a web of deceit and lies.The movie is long, but it held my interest all the way through.
leethomas-11621 The suspense comes and goes until finally the movie leaves you wanting more - more exposition, more complication, less contrivance. Worth watching (as usual) for Ewan McGregor's performance. And the island setting and the wintry atmosphere. I don't think we see a gun shot in anger during the whole movie which for a thriller must be a sort of feat! (viewed 1/17)
markmuhl Writing memoirs is not always a popular activity for all the people that have the potential of being mentioned therein, especially when they have something to hide. If it is a high-end politician like a British Ex-premier, who is writing the memoirs, then even state secrets may be at risk and for a potential ghostwriter involved the whole matter may become a dangerous thing when trying to bind together the loose end of the notes.How dangerous we get to know as the movie slowly evolves into a political thriller about war crimes. Soon it becomes obvious that the first ghostwriter did not die accidentally and that his successor better should not have accepted the financially highly attractive offer to finish off the work of his predecessor. The new ghost, played by Ewan McGregor, however is not easy to alarm but in some ways he is acting a bit naive, too naive as it turns out in the very end. Has he in the end be blinded by the fact that the real enemy is the person he has slept with? This naivety may be one of the weak points of the movie but I see it as a means to make the story work. If you compare this to the invulnerability of many other film protagonists I rather go with this attitude. According to me, the lack of such rather unrealistic action scenes is a strength of the movie and the suspense, which the film definitely has, comes more from a Hitchcock-like atmosphere of distrustful and mysterious behaviour. This atmosphere is well ed by the almost clinical interior of the beach house, where the new Ghost is being sent to and the grey skies that prevail in the movie. Moreover, director and Grandmaster Polanski does not forget to underlay the suspense at certain points with a subtle sense of humour.Overall a clear recommendation for all those that can still appreciate a movie only for its good story telling.
Syxiepoo Watching this again, for the second time this year, and still thoroughly enjoying it.Polanski can do no wrong for me, and this movie might be his best work. The story is enthralling, the actors riveting, and yet it is a lean and understated presentation.I have always had a vivid imagination, and yet I don't find that a hindrance to enjoying this movie. I have still to work out why that is since, usually, familiarity reduces the enjoyment level.Someone compared Polanski's style in this production to that of Hitchcock. That may well be so, but Polanski has a unique style all of his own, and it shines through for me in this movie. The best conspiracy stories are always edgy, and Ghost is rather edgier than most, especially through the understated way it comes across. It is not overly convoluted but still catches my imagination on every occasion, even after several viewings.Prior to this, Polanski's "Chinatown" was my favourite out of his work, and certainly near to the top of my top-10 favourite movies. Needless to say, "Ghost" has now moved firmly onto that short list.
