| Just Like Heaven | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Mark Waters |
| Produced by | Walter F. Parkes Laurie MacDonald |
| Written by | Marc Levy (novel) Peter Tolan Leslie Dixon |
| Starring | Reese Witherspoon Mark Ruffalo Donal Logue Jon Heder Dina Spybey Ivana Miličević Ben Shenkman Rosalind Chao Caroline Aaron Ron Canada |
| Music by | Rolfe Kent |
| Distributed by | DreamWorks |
| Release date(s) | September 16, 2005 (US) |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $58,000,000 |
| Box office | $102,854,431 (Worldwide)[1] |
Just Like Heaven is an American romantic comedy fantasy film released on September 16, 2005, in the United States and Canada. Set in San Francisco, it was directed by Mark Waters, starring Reese Witherspoon, Mark Ruffalo, and Jon Heder. It is based on the novel If Only It Were True (Et si c'était vrai...) by Marc Levy. Steven Spielberg acquired the rights to make the film out of the book.[2]
Just Like Heaven is the latest-released live-action film from DreamWorks to be sold to Soros Strategic Partners and Dune Entertainment II. This transaction was made soon after Paramount Pictures became the parent of DreamWorks, which has since become independent again (though Paramount still owns distribution and other ancillary rights to the Soros/Dune-controlled library).
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Elizabeth Masterson (Reese Witherspoon), a young doctor whose work is her whole life, is seriously injured in a car accident while on her way to a blind date. Three months later, David Abbott (Mark Ruffalo), a landscape architect recovering from the death of his wife, moves into the apartment that had been Elizabeth's.
Elizabeth begins to appear to David at the apartment. However with ghostly properties and abilities it is clear something is not normal: She can suddenly appear and disappear, move through walls, and once takes over his actions. When they meet, they are both surprised, as Elizabeth is not aware yet of her condition. For the most part, David is the only one who can see Elizabeth, leading others to believe that he is hallucinating and talking to himself. It is later revealed that one of Elizabeth's young nieces can also sense her presence although she cannot see her.
At first, Elizabeth does not remember anything of her life, and refuses to believe that she is dead. Her memories come back gradually. Together, assisted by Zen-like psychic Darryl (Jon Heder), she and David find out who she is, what happened to her, and why they are connected. Eventually, David discovers that the reason he is the only one who can see Elizabeth is that he was her blind date. They find that her body is in a coma in the hospital. In accordance with her living will, she will soon be taken off life support. Elizabeth's spirit and David, who have fallen in love, manage to prevent this just in time, and she miraculously recovers. However, the recovered Elizabeth doesn't remember anything that happened during the coma or any of the events with David, leaving him heartbroken.
Sometime later, Elizabeth goes up to the roof of her apartment, which has been transformed into a beautiful landscaped garden. She sees David there, who had got in with the spare key he had kept in order to tend the garden. Just as he is about to leave, she asks for her key back. When their hands touch, her memory of the events during her coma are restored, and they kiss. Before the credits roll, Darryl is shown looking at them in a crystal ball. Darryl is proud and sighs "Righteous".
Although the film was popular, it was overshadowed by Witherspoon's more high-profile and almost simultaneously released blockbuster Walk the Line, for which she won an Academy Award. Critics were mixed on the film, although the most prominent of them, such as Roger Ebert, Richard Roeper, and A.O. Scott, gave it favorable reviews. They all agreed that the plot had logical flaws that were somewhat overcome by good dialogue and characterization. The performances of Witherspoon, Ruffalo, and Heder were all generally well-received. Heder's appearance helped to debunk an urban rumor that the actor had died shortly after filming Napoleon Dynamite. The DVD release in February 2006 was given unusually strong promotional publicity.
The title of this film is also that of a popular 1987 song, "Just Like Heaven" by The Cure. Singer Katie Melua recorded a cover version of the song for the soundtrack of the film. Melua's version is played over the opening titles. The original version by The Cure, as well as the remainder of Melua's version, are played over the closing credits.
The orchestral score was written by Rolfe Kent, and orchestrated by Tony Blondal.
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