We Have a Ghost (2023)

I know, I usually talk about superhero movies, but this time I’ve had a change of heart and I chose to review We Have a Ghost, a newly released, supernatural horror comedy film which revolves around the constantly moving Presley family, who attracts both the wanted and unwanted attention of the entire town, when the CIA finds out that their new home houses the spirit of the mute and amnesiac Ernest the Ghost.

This movie differs greatly from other stereotypical ghost haunted house movies, that basically had the characters trying to rid themselves of the malevolent specter, in that Ernest does not have any malicious intentions and is just a tormented soul, pun intended, who remembers nothing about his past life or even how he died. This situation prevents him from “moving on” to the afterlife and traps him in the Presleys’ house, which he appears to have had some sort of connection to in his previous life, and he has occupied in the last fifty years, continuously scaring its occupants into leaving as swiftly as they could. However, everything changes when he met Kevin Presley.

After having moved around the country for as much as he has, because of his dad never being able to keep his hollow promises about affording a better future for his kids, Kevin did not seem fazed by a lot of things in his life, which is shown most prominently when he discovers a literal ghost living in the attic. He finds Ernest’s attempts to scare him into running with his tail between his legs rather hilarious. He even develops a kind of friendship with the dead man and goes as far as to help him on a comedic and terrifying journey to regain his memories. He finally finds closure to his never-ending torment, truly proving how far this genre has gotten since the 1900s.

F. Garioni