OVER YOUR DEAD BODY (AMAZON PRIME) (2026)

SYNOPSIS: A dysfunctional married couple retreats to a secluded cabin to repair their relationship, but each secretly plots to murder the other.

MOVIE REVIEW:

Over Your Dead Body is a dark action comedy about a marriage gone horribly wrong along with a whole slew of other bad decisions. Based on Norwegian filmmaker Tommy Wirkola’s The Trip (2021), this remake stars Jason Segel and Samara Weaving as a couple plotting to kill each other during a weekend getaway in the woods.

The marriage between Dan (Segel) and Lisa (Weaving) is on the rocks, yet they still decide to go on a secluded retreat together. Dan is an unsuccessful film director while Lisa is a failed actress. Their relationship is plagued by controlling behaviour, financial problems, and infidelity. The best part? Both of them are secretly planning to murder the other. Things spiral further out of control when they are taken hostage by three fugitives- Pete (Timothy Olyphant), Allegra (Juliette Lewis), and Todd (Keith Jardine). Lisa offers to lead them to a nearby bank to withdraw $50,000, but Dan has a far riskier plan in mind. Will this dysfunctional couple survive the nightmare unfolding in the remote cabin?

Once the 87North Productions logo flashes across the opening credits, you know you are in for some kind of violent mayhem. To be fair, the movie keeps its cards close to its chest for quite a while before revealing where things are truly headed.

The first act focuses heavily on Dan and Lisa’s toxic relationship. How did this once-loving couple end up despising each other to the point of murder? The screenplay by comedy duo Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney delivers sharp, hilarious, and delightfully unhinged dialogue. Their constant arguments and vicious quarrels are entertaining to watch, although the film never fully convinces the audience that murder is the inevitable outcome for either of them.

The second half transforms into an entirely different beast as director Jorma Taccone and his creative team unleash all sorts of chaotic, gross-out body violence reminiscent of Wirkola’s Violent Night and 87North’s Nobody. Since Dan and Lisa are far from action heroes or martial arts experts, most of the action scenes rely on messy, improvised, and twisted confrontations that add to the film’s unpredictable energy.

It has been a while since we have seen Segel this good on screen. His deadpan comic delivery remains a gem, while Weaving matches his energy perfectly. Olyphant and Lewis are especially charming despite playing thoroughly unlikeable characters. However, there is a rape scene involving Todd and Dan that some viewers may find offensive and difficult to watch.

Over Your Dead Body has almost everything you could want from a dark comedy- outrageously funny, intentionally gory, and unapologetically mean-spirited in all the right ways.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee