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‘Extra Ordinary’ Review: Dirs. Mike Ahern & Enda Loughman (2019)

Extra Ordinary review: Ghosts, driving instructors, and washed-up musicians form the three key ingredients in this quirky and endearing Irish gem.

Rose Dooley (Maeve Higgins) is a driving instructor with a past in ghostbusting. After an unfortunate accident led to her father’s death, Rose swore to never use her talent again. Then after an encounter with desperate widowed man Martin Martin (Barry Ward), Rose finds herself torn between keeping her vow, and helping Martin and his teenage daughter.

Good comedy in films rests upon two factors: the script and the acting. Extra Ordinary has both in spades. The humour is quite dry, quick witted and all manners of quirky, but within the environment of the film is works perfectly. Although silly at times, the film never strays into being too silly, and it’s that restraint that sees it stand out from its counterparts. In terms of the actors, Extra Ordinary has been cast perfectly, even the smaller supporting roles shine and hold the viewer’s attention, making them more than the typical cardboard throwaway characters.

At the beating heart of Extra Ordinary lies Maeve Higgins’ Rose. Higgins injects so much personality and deadpan delivery into her character, that it’s only a heart of stone that wouldn’t warm to her. A perpetual down-on-her luck type, Rose is simultaneously super cheery and careful, and riddled with guilt and anxiety. She’s a wonderfully regular character and, upon watching, I’m sure most will recognise that they know at least one Rose; those that don’t will want to seek one out. Barry Ward also deserves accolade. As Martin Martin he has the slightly trickier job of conveying several different personalities as he becomes a conduit for Rose’s work. Each character not only has their own voice, but physicality; Ward switches seamlessly between them. He never gets lost in these characters and the audience can easily tell when it’s Martin and when it isn’t.

What’s even more exciting about Extra Ordinary is that writing and directing team Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman have created a truly vibrant world. Within the first few moments, a tape recording of one of Rose’s dad’s shows; the audience is seduced by the simple charm of the piece. This place of imagination is just the right blend of normal, weird and wacky – move-on gnome stick, there’s now the willy stick. The world, and it’s characters, are so interesting and entertaining that this is sort of film that deserves expanding upon. The premise of the film would lend itself beautifully to the television format, and I for one would happily settle down to watch Rose’s weekly run-ins with the paranormal.

A fun, heart-warming and genuinely funny film, prepare for belly laughs and warm fuzzy feelings. Buoyed by great comedic, chameleon-like performances, and a rich fictional world, Extra Ordinary is extraordinarily charming.

Extra Ordinary arrives in cinemas on Friday 25th October 2019.

Kat Hughes is a UK born film critic and interviewer who has a passion for horror films. An editor for THN, Kat is also a Rotten Tomatoes Approved Critic. She has bylines with Ghouls Magazine, Arrow Video, Film Stories, Certified Forgotten and FILMHOUNDS and has had essays published in home entertainment releases by Vinegar Syndrome and Second Sight. When not writing about horror, Kat hosts micro podcast Movies with Mummy along with her five-year-old daughter.

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