Drop Dead Fred

Dir: Ate de Jong
Star: Phoebe Cates, Rik Mayall, Marsha Mason, Tim Matheson

[11] It's something of a coincidence that Cates has Mayall as a made-up pal here, as I've got this imaginary friend called Phoebe Cates, who comes to my bedroom every night and... Anyway, Phoebe's marriage falls apart and her psyche resurrects D.D.F. to wreak havoc. Feels a bit like Beetlejuice, especially at the end when the psychological aspects take over; apart from that, there are some flashes of genius from Mayall worth waiting for, and Cates keeps an admirably straight face. It could (and maybe should?) have gone further, however, and remains generally too tastefully schmaltz.

C

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