The biggest problem I have with Death Becomes Her is that we spend the entire runtime with some of the most unpleasant and unlikable characters imaginable. I suppose the doctor is shown with some redeeming qualities, but they only shine through because he's got such miserable women with him. I can't fault the acting, in fact I think the trio are pretty great at playing the characters they are asked to portray. Bruce Willis in particular is able to show off his excellent comedic timing in a role that isn't like his typical fare. Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn are good at portraying these hyper-competitive women who value their looks over everything. The characters are established well, as there is plenty of build-up in the movie, so I just need to be clear all that irritates me is that they are people I don't want to spend time with even when just watching them on my TV.
I do appreciate some background work to start off a film and give backstory to the characters. My problem with that in Death Becomes Her is that there really aren't any laughs until the big inciting incident takes place. For a comedy to take more than 30 minutes to even make me chuckle once, they're doing something wrong. There are a few good jokes throughout the film, when it finally gets rolling. I think I appreciated that so much of the comedy is about awful things happening to these despicable people. There's also a lot of great special effects work involved in the movie. At times it can look a bit like the visual effects they used for the Toons in Roger Rabbit, but otherwise it is quite effective. Death Becomes Her is obviously a well-made film, and I can see how other viewers might love it. I just needed more laughs and a protagonist that I could root for when the going got tough.
I do appreciate some background work to start off a film and give backstory to the characters. My problem with that in Death Becomes Her is that there really aren't any laughs until the big inciting incident takes place. For a comedy to take more than 30 minutes to even make me chuckle once, they're doing something wrong. There are a few good jokes throughout the film, when it finally gets rolling. I think I appreciated that so much of the comedy is about awful things happening to these despicable people. There's also a lot of great special effects work involved in the movie. At times it can look a bit like the visual effects they used for the Toons in Roger Rabbit, but otherwise it is quite effective. Death Becomes Her is obviously a well-made film, and I can see how other viewers might love it. I just needed more laughs and a protagonist that I could root for when the going got tough.