If Ghosted was a made-for-TV movie starring no-name actors, its existence might make sense. As a vehicle for two bankable A-listers, I can only say… huh?
Starting out as something that barely resembles a real film, this limp and formulaic action romcom does at least improve with time. By the end, we’ve seen a few mildly amusing fight scenes and some competent material from supervillain Adrien Brody. Mostly though, Ghosted is bad enough to make you wonder what, exactly, went wrong.
Director: Dexter Fletcher
Streaming: Apple TV+
Chris Evans and Ana de Armas star in this action romcom about a regular Joe who accidentally dates a CIA agent. But despite the A-list casting, Ghosted painfully bland, failing to deliver any laughs or make us care about the central romance.
We all know Chris Evans and Ana de Armas can be charming and funny. Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman; Eddie the Eagle) has directed energetic, crowd-pleasing movies in the past. Ghosted‘s screenwriting team have a selection of popular comedies and blockbusters under their belts, including Deadpool, The Lego Batman Movie, and the Tom Holland Spider-Man trilogy. So how did Ghosted end up so dull and personality-free?
Starting out like a conventional romcom, Cole (Evans) and Sadie (de Armas) collide in an unconvincing meet-cute at a farmer’s market. Sadie wants to buy a houseplant but Cole doesn’t trust her to keep it alive, causing a stilted argument. “The sexual tension was off the charts!” exclaims one of Cole’s friends; an optimistic editorial note from the screenwriters.
In reality, the only thing less believable than Cole and Sadie’s chemistry is Ana de Armas’ wig. A mystifying creative choice, because why not just keep her natural hair? Just one of many little distractions you’ll be pondering as Ghosted struggles to retain your interest.
Somehow, this interaction leads to Sadie and Cole going on a lengthy date, with the clingy Cole expecting more. When Sadie fails to text him back the next day, he decides to hunt her down, leading to a shocking revelation: Sadie is secretly a CIA agent. Their relationship puts Cole in danger, segueing into a paint-by-numbers feud over a high-tech MacGuffin. Along the way, we’re treated to several cameos from Marvel stars—courtesy of the cast and crew’s connections, presumably.
With the streaming-era romcom renaissance gradually picking up steam, it would be nice to see more of these films take the genre seriously, offering up some real wit and charisma. Starting with an argument between ill-suited strangers is a classic romcom trope, but it only works if the characters have some spark. Ghosted can’t even convince us that Cole and Sadie are attracted to each other, never mind making us root for their relationship to succeed.
Without any compelling banter or sexual tension, they’re just going through the motions of Goofy Boy Next Door vs. Tough Career Woman, plus extra guns and car chases. And despite occasional hints of Dexter Fletcher’s flare for action-comedy, most of the film is visually inert. Every location and costume seems intentionally designed to be as nondescript as possible. The only thing Ghosted has going for it is casting, and that star power is woefully misused.
