In the last few years, Christopher Landon has quietly but consistently forged his own little horror-comedy cottage industry; with the likes of Happy Death Day and Scout’s Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse, Landon has taken up the mantle that the likes of Joe Dante or Ivan Reitman had in the ‘80s, lending this under-served subgenre his own 21st century sensibilities and style.
We Have A Ghost continues the hot streak, and while this one skews a bit more YA or PG-13 than his earlier, blood-splattered work — good-heartedness here replaces the gore of his last film, the superb slasher body-swap Freaky — it remains a spooky, crowd pleasing treat: less Ghostbusters, more Ghost-befrienders.
Newcomer Jahi Di'Allo Winston (Queen And Slim) puts in a winning performance as our young hero, a Gen-Z-er who cannily undercuts the usual horror tropes of this kind of ghost story: rather than screaming, his first reaction to witness a phantom ghoul is to a) offer an incredulous laugh, b) get his phone out and film it, and c) go immediately viral, inspiring hashtags, conspiracy theories and TikTok challenges.
This is mostly an earnest, thoughtful genre piece, less interested in scares and more interested in cares.
For the ghost’s part, David Harbour’s grumpy frustration at his standard-issue ‘wooooo’-ing rendered ineffective is very funny. As Ernest, Harbour puts in a wordless performance worthy of silent film, working purely via body language and facial expression. He manages to be both Chaplin-esque funny and winningly warm, utilising to full effect the gentle facial expressions that made Chief Hopper a father figure to millions.
Like any Landon joint, in fact, it’s stuffed with great performances — Anthony Mackie is a great deadbeat dad, desperate for a win; while Jennifer Coolidge puts in a typically camp and deranged cameo as Judy Romano, ‘The West Bay Medium’. And in the Landon tradition, there are knowing lines for horror fans, too (“We are not going to be like every stupid white family in every horror movie,” insists Erica Ash’s obstinate mother).
But that Extremely Online, irony-soaked wit is tempered here: this is mostly an earnest, thoughtful genre piece, less interested in scares and more interested in cares. It’s a film ultimately about families, and seems to be designed to be watched by them too (at least, families with teenage kids) — a ghost story that nearly everyone can enjoy.
