Ghost Mom
((Mon. (1), 8-10 p.m., Fox)) Filmed in Toronto by A Power Pictures Corp. with the participation of Richard Crystal Co. in association with Hearst Entertainment. Executive producer, Richard Crystal; producers, Daniel Harris, Constantino Magnatta; director, Dave Thomas, writers, Harris, Magnatta, Thomas; story, Harris, Magnatta.
Cast: Jean Stapleton, Geraint Wyn Davis, Shae D'Lyn, Denis Akiyama, Jayne Eastwood, Zachary Bennet, Ed Sahely, Bernard Behrens, Stuart Clow, Jeff Pustil, John Thomas, Dennis Sweeting, Jack Duffy, Patrick Patterson, Reg Dreger, Bunty Webb, Eric Fink, Dan Duran, Roger Dunn, Claire Cellucci, Graham McPherson, Peter Kosaka, Lance Koyata, Evan Carter, Diane Flacks, Ingrid Kavelaars, Paul Greenberg, Don Lamont, Karen Hines, Samantha Croxall, Nick Johne, Helene Clarkson, Christian Matheson, Daniel Warry-Smith, Miko Beaudry, Noam Jenkins, Merle Matheson, Michael Chow.
By DOMINIC GRIFFIN
This comedy-thriller starts out well but fails to deliver on its promise. The result is just amusing and mildly entertaining; lack of focus in detail and erratic thesping, directing are at fault.
Martin Mallory (Davies) is a surgeon with a meddling mother, Mildred (Stapleton), who will do anything to get attention from her son, including dressing up as a nurse and sneaking into the operating theater. On one such visit she accidentally acquires a priceless diamond, which is removed from the mouth of a shooting victim. Mildred then dies and is buried with what has become her lucky stone.
Enter three Japanese gangsters dressed in black who will stop at nothing to get the diamond. Mildred then returns to Earth as a ghost to help her son solve the case. Shae D'Lyn plays Jean, mom's housekeeper and recipient of Martin's affections, but suffers from a case of bad Irish accent. No one except the mobsters realize that Mildred is in possession of the jewel, but through her newly acquired powers as a dead person she knows she must convince Martin and Jean to transport her body to Niagara Falls, whereall will be revealed.
Ed Sahely puts in one of the better performances as Mr. Whippet, the whimsical mortician. Stapleton and Davies are good with their roles.
The teleplay by Daniel Harris, Constantino Magnatta and Dave Thomas is quite funny in places; its execution is not. Some scenes are played slapstick, some straight comedy, while others are played dramatic. The scenes look fine on their own but they don't gel as one piece.
There are some storyline discrepancies. Continuity is overlooked in some scenes with curtain open at one camera angle, closed at another.
Telepic could and should have been better given what it had to start out with: a good premise and good actors.
Camera, Francois Protat; editor, Nick Rotunda; sound, Bryan Day; production designer, Harold Thrasher; art director, Jeri Thrasher; music, Ian Thomas.