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In Over Your Dead Body, till death do us part can’t come soon enough. That’s not surprising if you’ve seen Tommy Wirkola’s Norwegian original, The Trip. Jorma Taccone’s American remake opts for a more cartoonish, comedy-forward take that keeps the graphic violence. It’s an antithetical romantic comedy until it’s not, finding hilarity in a couple’s apparent hatred for one another (at least to start). Taccone, who helped shape an entire generation’s sense of humor thanks to SNL Digital Shorts, makes us laugh as bullets fly and blood gushes. Although I’d warn against watching The Trip beforehand, since Wirkola’s nasty piece of work better navigates the juxtaposition of brutality and bracing jokes.
Jason Segel and Samara Weaving star as Dan and Lisa, a mismatched Hollywood couple planning a woodland retreat at Dan’s father’s cabin that will end in death (Paul Guilfoyle stars as a crusty war veteran of a parent). Dan has had enough of his partner’s constant criticisms and loveless demeanor, so he lays the groundwork for her disappearance. Lisa, unbeknownst to her struggling filmmaker spouse, plans the same scheme. Once together, their intentions clash in a confusing outburst of exposed murder blueprints. But, that’s not even the worst of their problems … somehow.
It’s an illuminating role for Segal, most known for his everyday funnyman schtick. As Dan, he’s a pathetic shell of a man; this angry Frankenstein-lumbering muppet who has infuriated outbursts but no spine to salvage his life. Weaving’s sardonic pokes and prods have bite; this beautiful, hopeful starlet who begs for any passionate emotional response from Dan. With every jab, Dan inflates into this wavy-armed balloon of rage, but it’s only hot air. You can believe these are two individuals who want to hack each other’s bodies apart; their chemistry thrives under toxic conditions, bringing the best of the worst out of each other. Their disdain is addictive, and the anchor of Taccone’s laughs.
Writers Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney (BriTANicK) find more to laugh at in Wirkola’s screenplay, which is heavily reused in Over Your Dead Body. They also tweak the dismality a bit, pulling back on the “surprise” twist of three escaped convicts dropping from the ceiling onto Dan and Lisa. Instead of a trio of abhorrent psychopaths who push the envelope, we get Timothy Olyphant’s leader (Pete) and Juliette Lewis’ former corrections officer (Allegra) in a self-serving situationship, plus Keith Jardine’s skinhead muscle (Todd) as a violent dodo. The threat of unpredictable criminals still looms, but not as savagely. Dan and Lisa find their survival instincts together a bit quicker, while the trifecta of baddies is toned down (if you can believe it), leaving vicious intrigue on the table.
What that means for Over Your Dead Body is that everything’s a bit too cutesy, yet the product is still an insanely gory genre hybrid that puts its characters through hell. Taccone goes the extra mile when it comes not only to character deaths, but also to every endured physical punishment from pool-ball bonks to lawnmower wounds and every injury in between. We see the fleshy craters left by shotgun blasts, and howl as broad backs look like pincushions, except the pins are kitchen knives. Olyphant shows a twinkle in his eye when Pete gets to torturing, while also commenting on their unhealthy relationship dynamic. It’s like Taccone knows what’s expected from him, given his Lonely Island sketches or MacGruber, so he punches into overdrive when it comes to the film’s action-horror gratuity.
In all those regards, Over Your Dead Body impresses—but it’s lacking Wirkola’s oomph. Frankly, that won’t matter if you haven’t seen The Trip, which becomes a personal problem, but one that’s shared with anyone who adores the original (readily available on Netflix). There are gut-busting elements to Over Your Dead Body, especially thanks to Paul Guilfoyle’s fast and furious driving skills. And, as just mentioned, that cast sells the hell out of being the home invasion horror version of Crash Test Dummies. The problem is that, by going harder into comedic territory and embracing the comeback nature of Dan and Lisa’s simmering love story sooner, Taccone’s take becomes more conventional in a distracting way.
Had I not seen The Trip? There’s a chance there’s another half-star tacked on. But by staying so close to the original in narrative terms, changes in tone and temper stand out more and are unavoidable in comparison.
Over Your Dead Body is cynical but compassionate; merciless but with tongue-in-cheek justice. What shines here is the pairing of Segal and Weaving: one a genre veteran and modern Scream Queen, the other an affable nice guy stuck in How I Met Your Mother typecasting, who succeeds in breaking those sitcom chains. Taccone doesn’t avoid standard complaints of Americanized remakes that soften the extremes of international cinema, but can push far enough to keep genre diehards interested. It’s good for what it is, and while disappointingly not great, Taccone has enough tricks up his sleeve to overcome the very one-to-one nature of this familiar retelling.
Movie Score: 3.5/5
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