Nothing in “Extra Ordinary,” a comedy from Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman, suggests that ghosts have gravitated specifically toward Ireland. But they have a way of finding Rose (the comedian Maeve Higgins), a driving instructor who does her best to deny her knack for communicating with them. It’s complicated: Her father (Risteard Cooper) hosted a video series on supernatural occurrences, and she was his partner in all things paranormal. Then he died in a freak accident involving a dog and a haunted pothole, an incident for which Rose blames herself.
But she still gets calls from strangers who need exorcisms. Martin (Barry Ward) phones with one problem — his dead wife is bossing him around from beyond the grave, inscribing messages in a fogged bathroom mirror or burning them into toast — and quickly encounters another. His daughter (Emma Coleman) has fallen under a satanic spell. An absurdly coifed one-hit wonder named Christian Winter (Will Forte), who moved to Ireland for the tax exemptions and dabbles in the dark arts, is planning to sacrifice her at the forthcoming blood moon.
Again, that’s a lot of strange in this particular neighborhood. While “Extra Ordinary” overextends its ghosts-are-blasé conceit, Higgins and Ward are appealing leads, and the movie has plenty of charming moments, such as Rose watching an episode of her dad for guidance. (The amusing clips, along with the video for Christian’s hit song, “Cosmic Woman,” have been shot with a deliberate amateurishness that evokes decades-old 1-900 commercials.) And if the pace occasionally drags, the finale piles on complications with a rapidity that more than makes up for it.
Extra Ordinary
Rated R for vomited ectoplasm. Running time: 1 hour 34 minutes.
Source: Movies - nytimes.com
