The Ghost

Post-Oscar season tends to be laden with breezy political thrillers like The Ghost, which is an interesting, albeit slightly unsatisfying drama-thriller. Aptly adapted by Roman Polanski and Robert Harris from his own novel, The Ghost is not political commentary; instead director Polanski concentrates on crafting a slow-burning mystery, stylishly unravelling the secrets of the Ex-Prime Minister.
Ex-Prime Minister Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan) hires Ewan McGregor as the predecessor to his ghost writer, who has died under mysterious circumstances. Information has been leaked to the media that Adam is guilty of war crimes as McGregor is whisked away to a very rainy and gloomy island near New York to stay with Adam and finish his memoirs, whilst slowly discovering the clues his predecessor left behind.
Brosnan does not get enough screen time and when onscreen largely blows it, as if he is still recovering from Mamma Mia. Despite a shaky Londoner accent, McGregor is solid in the leading role, but he is a 2D character, he is there to get us from plot A to plot B. There are supporting turns from Kim Cattrall, channelling Samantha Jones with a British accent as Adam’s PA and Olivia Williams as his suffering wife who turns into a femme fatale half way through which is quickly forgotten about. Eli Wallach delivers the same cheeky cameo role as he did in Mystic River as ‘old kooky guy giving extra background information so the plot makes more sense to the main character/audience’. The ever-reliable Tom Wilkinson is a welcome addition further into the film as we delve more into Adam’s past.
Thankfully, despite the hefty 128 minutes running time, The Ghost never succumbs to being boring or slow. This is helped by any scene devoid of plot or dialogue, such as McGregor driving looking worried is accompanied by ‘tension’ music as well as characters sharing meaningful glances between themselves. The Ghost is twisty and enjoyable enough, but the revelations are never shocking or revealing enough, they incur more of a ‘oh OK’ reaction. The biggest attempt at a ‘gotcha’ moment ends up feeling slightly cheap.
The cinematography and location lend the film a much needed gritty and dark atmosphere. As a drama, the film succeeds; the script is intriguing and capably directed by Polanski. However, attracted by the promises of a thriller may be disappointed as unfortunately there is no sustained tension. For every exciting scene there is an obvious and clunky exposition scene. For example, the PA has not thrown out the possessions for the man who has mysteriously died and leaves McGregor to stumble across any important clues himself.
Despite its faults, The Ghost is competently made and certainly one of McGregor’s better thriller choices, leaving the ghastly Deception behind him. It is certainly an interesting and thought provoking way to spend two hours and a moderately successful addition to an ever-growing catalogue of thrillers based on popular crime novels.