In Extra Ordinary, Rose Dooley (Maeve Higgins) works as a driving instructor in rural Ireland, although her true talents lie elsewhere: she inherited the talent of her father, a paranormal investigator, to deal with ghosts. Once his student, Rose has shunned her gift since her father’s death.
This changes when one-hit-wonder Christian Winter (Will Forte) tries to reinvigorate his pop career with a satanic bargain. The demon Astaroth (Jed Murray) demands a virgin in return for the next billboard smash hit — and Winter decides to sacrifice Sarah (Emma Coleman), the daughter of Martin Martin (Barry Ward).
Martin, himself a talent and haunted by his wife’s ghost, seeks Rose’s assistance, and together, the two have to stop Winter and save Sarah. Extra Ordinary is written and directed by first-time filmmakers Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman, and it makes for an impressive début.
The film primarily works thanks to Maeve Higgins, whose charm and cheerfulness holds together the blend of romantic comedy and horror. At times, Extra Ordinary is surprisingly gory. However, the rom-com elements far outweigh the horror, and the film is never really scary — which is probably for the better.
Extra Ordinary is friendly and wholesome, and while the film feels slightly drawn out at times, it makes up for it with solid special effects, consistent humour, and quirkiness. And a tie-in video game that we have reviewed as well.
Extra Ordinary will be released in theatres in the United States on March 6, 2020.
