Based on a graphic novel, Rest in Peace Department, R.I.P.D. is the quintessential summer film. It's funny but totally predictable with so-so visuals. The premise is simple: a recently murdered cop (Reynolds) is drafted into the R.I.P.D. and partnered with an Old West curmudgeon (Bridges). Terrible things happen, and the mismatched duo set out to save the world and get a little revenge on the side.
The banter and dynamic between Reynolds and Bridges is fairly believable, but the stereotypes of a remorseful cop and long-dead gunslinger are way overplayed. Mary-Louise Parker is a bright spot in the film as the wonderfully deadpan Proctor. Her love/hate relationship with Roy (Bridges) is woven throughout the film, but thankfully it never overshadows the story. Such as the plot is.
The directing for R.I.P.D. is a little...lacking. While in the human world, Nick and Roy have bodies that are completely opposite of their own. Roy's avatar is a bombshell blonde while Nick is stuck as an old Chinese man. From time to time, filming would switch between the bodies they died in and their avatars. For the most part, those switches are completely telegraphed and not confusing, but the split second it takes to remember "Oh yeah, the blonde's actually Roy," can distract from the film's experience. The writing and comedy in R.I.P.D. isn't anything you wouldn't expect from watching the trailers. In fact, it's all rather predictable, but the delivery by Reynolds, Bridges, and Parker saves the film from falling completely flat.
The CGI in the movie leave a little to be desired. Perhaps it was the 3-D, or maybe the "deados", as the evil dead are called, are really just that badly rendered. It was fairly evident to me that the deados are all computer-generated, allowing the film to miss out on having some really awesome make-up effects. That was a bit disappointing.
All told, I was entertained by R.I.P.D. but I wasn't overly impressed with the film. The best part might have been that Jeff Bridges wrote and sang a song that is featured in one of the later scenes. But even that isn't enough to save a lackluster script. While this film is completely up Ryan Reynolds' alley, I expect more from Jeff Bridges.
