'Ghost Town' (PG-13)(out of four)

"I see dead people" is something the main character in "Ghost Town" can accurately claim, but unlike "The Sixth Sense," this new film starring Ricky Gervais is playing this special vision strictly for laughs.

Gervais (the star of both the British version of "The Office" and the HBO series, "Extras") plays Dr. Bertram Pincus, an uptight English dentist attempting to live as solitary a lifestyle as possible in Manhattan. The good doctor won't hold elevators for neighbors, doesn't associate with colleagues at work and has a definite air of impatience about him.

Pincus' life takes a turn when he goes to a hospital for a colonoscopy. His short stay does not begin well. First, he has to deal with a surgeon (hilariously played by "Saturday Night Live's" Kristen Wiig) who insists on having the last word. Then after his discharge, he starts encountering deceased people on the street who are stunned that a living person can see them.

They include Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), a philandering businessman who dies in the film's opening scene. Herlihy, like his dead compatriots, is forced to hang around because he has an unresolved issue to deal with. Namely, that he's trying to keep his widow (Tea Leoni), an expert in Egyptian mummies, from marrying a lawyer (Billy Campbell of "The Rocketeer") who he thinks is a complete leech.

The doctor finds out the reason he can see and speak with his entourage of formerly living New Yorkers is because during his hospital stay, he was clinically dead for 7 minutes. He's faced with a choice: put up with the crowd of ghosts who won't stop pestering him for help or assist Kinnear with stopping his wife's impending marriage. The less-than-socially adapt dentist decides he should easily be able to sweep the widow off her feet.

As this would-be Romeo awkwardly stumbles through his romantic pursuit, Kinnear stands by with advice that is only sometimes followed. Gervais is wonderful in a difficult role: He successfully makes the transition from arrogant, anti-social loner to a romantic lead that the audience is rooting for. (Gervais' accent is quite heavy, however and some of his lines might slip past in a thick fog of dialect.)

Leoni delivers nicely as the love interest and adds a touch of vulnerability as her character slowly reveals the flaws in her marriage. Kinnear isn't exactly stretched to the limit with his role, but does have some nice moments near the end. Campbell is only in the film for a few scenes, but is quite entertaining as the Leoni's too-perfect-to-be-true fiancé.

The script was written by David Koepp (whose long list of credits range from the last "Indiana Jones" film to "Jurassic Park") along with sometimes collaborator John Kamps. Koepp also directed and thankfully avoids the by-the-book, cliché scenes. There are enough slight twists to keep the audience's attention. Koepp also manages to deliver a number of nice subtle touches, such as having the soundtrack playing a classical instrumental and then having the shot reveal a street musician performing that number in the scene.

"Ghost Town" provides laughs, romance and enough of an uplifting message that this movie should not only entertain audiences, it might also prove to be a solid hit at the box office. Certainly the tourism folks in New York will be happy -- not since "When Harry Met Sally" has the Big Apple looked so attractive.