In Pico Mundo, a small town near the desert, the fast-food cook Odd Thomas (Anton Yelchin) has the ability to see and talk to dead people. He is in love with his girlfriend Stormy Llewellyn (Addison Timlin) and they believe that they are destined to be together forever. Odd Thomas uses his abilities to help the Chief of Police Wyatt Porter (Willem Dafoe) to solve murders.

When Odd Thomas sees the creepy Fungus Bob Robertson (Shuler Hensley) surrounded by the fiends bodachs, he is sure that the town is in danger and threatened by the possibility of slaughtering people in a massive destruction. His further investigation with Stormy discloses that Fungus Bob worships the Prince of Darkness and he is plotting to kill many people in Pico Mundo. Will Odd Thomas and Stormy succeed in avoiding the bloodshed?

"Odd Thomas" is an entertaining movie, with a story that uses the idea of "The Sixth Sense" with "Ghost". Despite the use of CGI, the acting is good and Addison Timlin is among the most beautiful young actresses that I have recently seen. There is a surprising plot point near the end, sad but perfect to the story. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Estranho Thomas" ("The Odd Thomas")

When I began watching "Odd Thomas", I sure got a strong sense of déjà vu. After all, so much of this movie is familiar to me. It's because a couple of Bryan Fuller's television shows ("Pushing Daisies" and "Dead Like Me") have very, very similar story lines. Now I have no idea if Dean Koontz's novel from which "Odd Thomas" is based was inspired by Fuller or vice-versa, but the similarities are so strong, I cannot imagine one not influencing the other. So what's similar? Main characters who can see the dead walking about, who are detectives that solve the deaths of these folks and the weird invisible beings who are behind all the 'accidents'--and they sure look a lot like each other (the gravelings and the bodachs). So, my advice is that if you like one, you'll probably like the other--though "Odd Thomas" is a much more serious production and has much more action--and it isn't a comedy.

Odd Thomas (Anton Yelchin) is a young man who sees dead people walking about from time to time. However, he mostly keeps this ability to himself, as he doesn't want everyone to think he's crazy. However, when these dead folks are crime victims, he works with a local detective who knows his secret (Willem Defoe) to solve the cases. His long-time girlfriend also knows his secret and sometimes helps him.

One day, Odd sees something really...odd. Instead of the usual bodach here or there, Odd sees many, many of these vicious invisible creatures. So, he knows something horrendous is going to happen--and many, many people are going to die. However exactly how and who are both things he must work on with his detective friend. Most of the film, despite all the death, is pretty light and enjoyable. The end, however, is like a kick in the gut...so you might want to have some Kleenex handy.

As I said above, if you like these two Fuller shows, you'll really like "Odd Thomas". I am a HUGE fan of them, so I naturally enjoyed the film. However, if you aren't a fan, still give the film a try. It's clever, very unusual and kept my interest throughout.

The film is based only on Koontz's first book and his fans probably all know that he has written several Odd Thomas novels. Considering that this film didn't exactly set box office records, I seriously doubt if we'll see follow-up movies--though I would sure love to see more. My guess is that you'll feel the same after you give it a try. If you're interested, it just debuted on Netflix's streaming service.

ODD THOMAS might as well have been called "attack of the CGI effects" for all the depth and breadth of the storyline. It's an adaptation of the popular novel by Dean Koontz about a young man gifted with psychic ability who can see manifested evil around him as well as ghosts and who finds himself drawn into a plot involving impending tragedy.

The film has a family-friendly feel to it despite some dark elements in the narrative, and there's plenty of jokey humour that doesn't really sit well with the rest of the material. I never really warmed to the late Anton Yelchin as the lead either, as he gives a cold performance that lacks charisma. When you don't care about the film's lead character it's difficult to care about the film full stop.

Yelchin's loner hero is slightly annoying and never stops talking. He reminds me a bit of Shia LaBeouf in DISTURBIA. The storyline is kept light and there's never a chance for proper characterisation so the likes of Willem Dafoe are wasted in support. The direction isn't bad although there is some silly slow motion on occasion. However, as an effects-fuelled adventure this isn't too bad. The CGI work is pretty decent and the fast pace helps you to take your mind off the problems with the story. It's certainly a forgettable production but one that nonetheless holds your attention throughout.