Just Like Heaven (2005)

Director:

Mark Waters

Writers (WGA):

Peter Tolan (screenplay) and
Leslie Dixon (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

16 September 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

It's a wonderful afterlife.

Plot:

A lonely landscape architect (Ruffalo) falls for the spirit of beautiful woman (Witherspoon) who used to live in his new apartment.

Plot Keywords:

San Francisco California | Holy Water | Sofa | Doctor | Key

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Reese Witherspoon	...	Dr. Elizabeth Masterson
Mark Ruffalo	...	David Abbott
Donal Logue	...	Jack Houriskey
Dina Spybey	...	Abby Brody (as Dina Waters)
Ben Shenkman	...	Dr. Brett Rushton
Jon Heder	...	Darryl
Ivana Milicevic	...	Katrina
Caroline Aaron	...	Grace
Rosalind Chao	...	Fran
Ron Canada	...	Dr. Walsh
Willie Garson	...	Maitre D'
Gabrielle Made	...	Nurse Maria
William Caploe	...	Nurse Bill
Shulie Cowen	...	Nurse Jenny
Billy Beck	...	Mr. Clarke
Diego Sebastian	...	Bandage Guy
Cristian Cruz	...	Orderly Luis (as Christian Cruz)
Benjamin Hughes	...	Peroxide Rocker
Cara Vivien Rosenberg	...	Balloon Girl
Catherine Taber	...	Intern Karen
Chris Pflueger	...	Tom Brody
Kerris Dorsey	...	Zoe Brody
Alyssa Shafer	...	Lily Brody
Paul Cassell	...	Michael, Brett's Friend
Drew Letchworth	...	UFO Guy
Raymond O'Connor	...	Father Flanagan
Lucille Soong	...	Chinese Exorcist
Joel McKinnon Miller	...	Lead Ghostbuster
Victor Yerrid	...	Ghostbuster #2
Robert Benjamin	...	Ghostbuster #3
Ron Hacker	...	Blues Guy
Kara Hamilton	...	Valerie
Nicole Wilder	...	Kim
Lorna Scott	...	Hippie Neighbor
Jeff Marcus	...	Uptight Neighbor
Ken Takemoto	...	Chinese Neighbor
Chaim Girafi	...	Dry Cleaner (as Chaim Jeraffi)
Doug Krizner	...	Donald Willis
Jacob Chambers	...	Kenny the Tall Man
Karen Harrison	...	Kenny's Friend
Ingrid Coree	...	Waitress
Lee Burns	...	Ivan the Bartender
Amita Balla	...	Young Receptionist
Tim Connolly	...	Security Guard #1
Tony Brubaker	...	Security Guard #2
Tim Sitarz	...	Security Guard #3
Jimmy Ortega	...	Security Guard #4
Ken Clark	...	Security Guard #5
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Michael Longstreth	...	Boy Walking
Aida Bernardino	...	Cablecar Passenger (uncredited)
Michael F. Grant	...	Passerby (uncredited)
Steve Irish	...	Patrolman (uncredited)
Marilee Lessley	...	Elizabeth in Coma (uncredited)
Yeena Lopez	...	Seamstress (uncredited)
Rick Margaritov	...	Bar Patron (uncredited)
Janean Christine Mariani	...	Trendy Barfly (uncredited)
David T. Niles	...	Man on Bicycle (uncredited)
James D. Weston II	...	Bar Patron / Precision Driver (uncredited)

Directed by
Mark Waters

Writing credits (WGA)
Peter Tolan		(screenplay) and
Leslie Dixon		(screenplay)
Marc Levy		(novel "If Only It Were True")

Produced by
Veronica Brooks	....	associate producer
David B. Householter	....	executive producer (as David Householter)
Marc Levy	....	co-producer
Laurie MacDonald	....	producer
Walter F. Parkes	....	producer

Original Music by
Rolfe Kent

Cinematography by
Daryn Okada		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Bruce Green

Casting by
Marci Liroff

Production Design by
Cary White

Art Direction by
Maria L. Baker

Set Decoration by
Barbara Haberecht

Costume Design by
Sophie Carbonell		(as Sophie de Rakoffl)

Makeup Department
Simone Almekias-Siegl	....	key makeup artist
Steve Artmont	....	makeup department head
Cydney Cornell	....	hair stylist: Ms. Witherspoon
Judith A. Cory	....	key hair stylist
Becky Cotton	....	key makeup artist
Gretchen Davis	....	makeup artist: San Francisco
Howard Leonard	....	hair stylist: San Francisco
Anne Morgan	....	hair designer: Ms. Witherspoon
Charlotte Parker	....	hair stylist (as Charlotte A. Parker)
Molly Stern	....	makeup artist: Ms. Witherspoon (as Molly R. Stern)
Roxane Griffin	....	additional hair stylist (uncredited)
Joel Harlow	....	makeup designer: Harlow FX (uncredited)
Rob Hinderstein	....	special makeup effects artist (uncredited)
Heather Plott	....	additional makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Stephanie Ito	....	post-production supervisor
Michelle Morrissey	....	production supervisor
Lope Yap Jr.	....	unit production manager: San Francisco

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Vernon Davidson	....	additional second assistant director
David Hakim	....	assistant director: San Francisco
Matthew Heffernan	....	additional assistant director
Paula Janos	....	additional second assistant director
Eric A. Pot	....	second assistant director
Benjamin Rosenberg	....	first assistant director
Robert 'Skid' Skidmore	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Lawson Brown	....	set dresser
Mike Cunningham	....	assistant property master
Shannon Curfman	....	lead person (as Shannon Curfman-Dayan)
Dave DeGaetano	....	construction coordinator
Virginia Hopkins	....	on-set painter: San Francisco
Anne Hyvarinen	....	stand-by painter
Mark Kelly	....	set props assistant
Richard N. McGuire	....	gangboss
Doni McMillan	....	leadman: San Francisco
Jennifer Moller	....	art department production assistant
Mike Piccirillo	....	art department coordinator
Cynthia C. Rebman	....	on-set dresser
Tom Richardson	....	painter: San Francisco
Alex Sessing	....	key greensman
Catherine Smith	....	set designer
Samantha Smith	....	buyer
Paul Stanwyck	....	paint foreman (as Paul J. Stanwyck)
Kana Takahashi	....	art department coordinator: San Francisco

Sound Department
Douglas Axtell	....	production sound mixer
Steven J. Berger	....	assistant sound
Jeremy Brill	....	sound
Jeff Gomillion	....	adr mixer
Andy Koyama	....	sound re-recording mixer
Mark A. Mangini	....	sound designer
Darrin Mann	....	foley mixer
Bill Meadows	....	sound recordist
Robert Morrisey	....	first assistant sound editor
Ralph Osborn	....	dialogue editor
Philip Rogers	....	adr recordist
Katie Rowe	....	foley artist
Sean Rowe	....	foley artist
Reuben Simon	....	sound editor
Andy Sisul	....	digital assistant sound editor
Ben Wienert	....	boom operator
John Clavin	....	sound engineer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Gary D. Bierend	....	special effects crew
Erick Brennan	....	special effects consultant
Al Broussard	....	special effects supervisor
Thomas Rasada	....	special effects foreman
Valek Sykes	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Joseph Bailey	....	visual effects
Miguel Bautista	....	digital effects artist
Thad Beier	....	visual effects
Jeremy Bloch	....	digital effects artist
Michael Brazelton	....	digital compositor
Michael Brazelton	....	paint/roto lead
Tim Carras	....	digital compositor: big red pixel
Serena Chang	....	visual effects
Jamie Clay	....	digital compositor
Brian Corpus	....	technical operations manager: Pacific Title and Art Studio
Edward M. Cox	....	visual effects coordinator
Andy Davis	....	digital compositor: Big Red Pixel
Michelle Eisenreich	....	visual effects producer: Hammerhead
Tarn Fox	....	compositor
Mark Herman	....	visual effects
Justin Jones	....	digital compositor
John G. Kirby	....	visual effects
Sylvain Lebeau	....	matchmover
Jonah Loop	....	visual effects producer
Rob Menapace	....	motion control operator
Raphael Mosley	....	Flame artist
David B. Moulder	....	visual effects producer: big red pixel
Pete O'Connell	....	compositor
Karl Raade	....	digital artist
Jay Randall	....	visual effects supervisor: BarXseven
Robert Rossello	....	visual effects supervisor
Den Serras	....	digital compositor: big red pixel
John E. Sullivan	....	visual effects supervisor
James D. Tittle	....	visual effects coordinator: Pacific Title
Linda Tremblay	....	digital compositor

Stunts
Rocky Capella	....	stunt coordinator
Tim Connolly	....	stunts
Annie Ellis	....	stunts
Tawny Marie Ellis	....	stunts
Joe Green	....	stunt performer
Larry Lam	....	stunts
Mike Martinez	....	utility stunts
Tim Meredith	....	utility stunts
Danton Mew	....	precision driver
Anthony Molinari	....	stunt double: Mark Ruffalo
Jimmy Ortega	....	stunt performer
Heidi Pascoe	....	stunt double: Reese Witherspoon
Jimmy Romano	....	stunt coordinator
Tim Sitarz	....	stunts
James D. Weston II	....	precision driver

Camera and Electrical Department
Steve Adcock	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Sal Alvarez	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
Tim Arasheben	....	remote camera technician
Norman Ash	....	electrician
Adam Austin	....	libra head operator
Ken Bazal	....	second assistant camera
Bill 'Thunder' Bridges	....	grip
James B. Crawford	....	gaffer
Vincent Every	....	grip
Jeph Folkins	....	second assistant camera: second unit
Cory Geryak	....	chief lighting technician: San Francisco
Taylor Greathead	....	camera production assistant
Sean Higgins	....	dimmer board operator
Mike Hodges	....	key grip
Peter Iovino	....	still photographer
Alan Jacoby	....	film loader
Scott Kidner	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Tommy Klines	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
James Kumarelas	....	additional rigging electrician
Larry McCarron	....	grip
Scott Odermann	....	rigging grip
Jeff Pelton	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera
Peyton Skelton	....	set lighting technician
Gregory W. Smith	....	camera operator: "a" camera
Gregory W. Smith	....	steadicam operator
Joseph T. Terranova	....	set lighting technician
Chris Toll	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
John Trunk	....	video assist operator
Paul Wilkowsky	....	grip
Steven J. Winslow	....	aerial camera technician: Wescam camera
Todd Stoneman	....	electrician (uncredited)

Animation Department
Jonathan Block	....	animator

Casting Department
Chris Bustard	....	extras casting
Geralyn Flood	....	casting assistant
Nancy Hayes	....	extras casting: San Francisco
Michele Short	....	casting associate

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Virginia Burton	....	costume supervisor
Valerie T. O'Brien	....	key costumer
Stephen Oh	....	costumer
Marian Toy	....	assistant costume designer

Editorial Department
Samantha Becker	....	post-production coordinator
Gary Burritt	....	negative cutter
Martin Cohen	....	post-production executive
Tom Hanada	....	post-production assistant
Bethany Orlemann	....	first assistant editor
Hugh Ross	....	assistant editor
Jeff Smithwick	....	color timer
Lee Wimer	....	color timer (uncredited)

Music Department
Tony Blondal	....	orchestrator
Bryan Clements	....	scoring crew
Stephen Coleman	....	music programmer
Stephen Coleman	....	orchestrator
Andrew Dorfman	....	composer: additional background music
Mark Eshelman	....	scoring crew
Trevor Gilchrist	....	music programmer: score
Charles Martin Inouye	....	music editor
Steve Kempster	....	score mixer
Rolfe Kent	....	conductor
Greg Loskorn	....	scoring technician
Adam Michalak	....	score recordist
Ralph Sall	....	executive music producer
Dan Savant	....	orchestra contractor
Nick South	....	music editor
Kerry Wikstrom	....	orchestrator
Alice Wood	....	assistant music editor

Transportation Department
Mark Brown	....	driver: production van
Daniel Canamar	....	transportation dispatcher
Casey Patrick Dugan	....	driver
Michael Menapace	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Adam H. Anderson	....	production assistant
Rachel Bati	....	assistant: Ms. Witherspoon
Alex Betuel	....	production assistant
Ariana Black	....	office production assistant: San Francisco
Jonathan Block	....	title designer
Scott Brant	....	assistant accountant
Gunnar Clancey	....	production assistant
William P. Davis	....	misc crew
Sara Dering	....	assistant location manager
Patricia L. DeShields	....	production accountant
Brian Dettor	....	set production assistant: San Francisco
Sharlene Duale	....	second assistant accountant: San Francisco
Stephen Dudycha	....	set production assistant
Eric Dvorsky	....	assistant technician: Pictorvision XR
Rory Enke	....	location manager: San Francisco
Rebecca Feldman	....	second assistant accountant
Ray Felipe	....	script researcher
Brett Fifield	....	production assistant
Paula Frankel	....	script supervisor: second unit
Felix Gehm	....	assistant location manager: San Francisco
Christopher Hanada	....	assistant production coordinator
Eric Hedayat	....	location manager
Brandon Heidt	....	production assistant
Steve Hertler	....	technician: Pictorvision XR
Eric Hooge	....	assistant location manager
Ellen J. Hornstein	....	assistant: Mr. Householter
Saisie M. Jang	....	assistant location manager: San Francisco
Dave Kasubowski	....	craft service
William P. Kelly	....	stand-in
Linda Kroll	....	assistant: Ms. MacDonald
Marilee Lessley	....	double
Marilee Lessley	....	stand-in
Sharon Lopez	....	production secretary: San Francisco
Jimmy Louie	....	location assistant
Jim Maguire	....	production assistant
Marlene Marks	....	payroll accountant
Debbie Merritt	....	travel coordinator
Steven R. Molen	....	production executive
Peter Moody	....	assistant location manager: San Francisco
Dave Moorer	....	set medic
Jennifer Mosley	....	production secretary
Maya Owings	....	assistant production coordinator: San Francisco
Pamela Palmer-DoQui	....	assistant: Ms. Witherspoon (as Pam Doqui)
Taylor Phillips	....	production assistant
Anisa Qureshi	....	office production assistant
Mike Riportella	....	second unit captain
Erin Rodman	....	assistant: Ms. MacDonald
Nicholas Rufca	....	key production assistant
Megan Schmidt	....	production assistant
Lori Shockley	....	production coordinator: San Francisco
Deborah Simmrin	....	unit publicist
Janna Stern	....	script supervisor
Riyoko Tanaka	....	assistant: Mr. Parkes
Ryan Tighe	....	additional production assistant
Brad Ungar	....	production assistant
Derek Van Vermaas	....	production coordinator
Derek Jan Vermaas	....	production coordinator
Wendy Wilhite	....	studio teacher
Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc	....	helicopter pilot

Production Companies

• DreamWorks SKG
• MacDonald/Parkes Productions

Distributors

• DreamWorks Distribution (2005) (USA) (theatrical)
• Bontonfilm (2005) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Magnavision (2005) (Philippines) (DVD)
• Net5 (2008) (Netherlands) (TV) (first national airing)
• Paramount Home Entertainment (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Germany) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (France) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Singapore) (theatrical)

Special Effects

• Pacific Title (opticals)
• Big Red Pixel (visual effects)
• Hammerhead Productions (additional visual effects)

Other Companies

• Bulletproof Recording Company  soundtrack
• Central Casting  extras casting
• Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment  cranes, dollies and remote camera systems
• Chef Robért Catering  catering
• Columbia Records  soundtrack released by
• Pivotal Post  Avid editing equipment provided by
• Pivotal Post  HD services
• Sony Music Soundtrax  soundtrack released by

Also Known As:

If Only It Were True (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 (Avid Phil) | Ireland:PG | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Canada:G (Québec) | UK:PG | Taiwan:PG-12 | Czech Republic:12 | Argentina:Atp | Hungary:14 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Sweden:Btl | Finland:K-3 | Brazil:Livre | Iceland:LH (video rating) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | Singapore:PG | Norway:A | Iceland:10 | Mexico:A | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Australia:PG | Malaysia:U | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41875) | Netherlands:6

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

The wedding video David is watching when he first encounters Elizabeth is actually that of an assistant of one of the film makers.

Goofs:

Continuity: David is lying in bed with Elizabeth toward the end of the film. He is scruffy. The very next morning, he wakes up and is clean shaved. Later, that same day, he is scruffy.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Nurse Maria: Elizabeth...
Elizabeth Masterson: How long was I out?
Nurse Maria: Um, about six minutes.
Elizabeth Masterson: Thanks, I'll be right there.
Nurse Maria: OK, I'll be outside.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs The Exorcist (1973)

Soundtrack:

Tomorrow

I was entertained

Why is a movie starring the wonderful Reese Witherspoon labeled a chick flick? Seems to me any male would want to see it. The viewer cannot help but love her character in this movie. Motherhood and marriage must agree with her, as she has never looked better.

Of course the storyline is quite fantastic and not very realistic. But who cares? I get up in the morning to face reality every day. I don't need to see too much of it at the movies.

Mark Rufalo did a fine job of acting, but to me it was Reese's movie all the way. I wonder why our movie critics and voters for Oscars and such don't give much weight to comedic actors and actresses? It takes just as much talent, and actually there are in my estimation less who really pull off comedic roles well. Reese Witherspoon has done it many times, and doesn't disappoint here. Most modern so-called comedies to me are simply not funny. However, this movie did make me laugh. The guy who works in the psychic bookstore was hilarious.

But this movie isn't all about comedy. It does touch at the heartstrings of any member of the human race who feels left out, feels like they are missing it. Usually a movie has one person who the viewer can really relate to. In this case, both leads played people who I could relate to.

If constant special effects, extreme violence, streams of foul language, or total realism are for you, then perhaps you should skip this movie. For the rest of us who can enjoy a romantic comedy, I can't imagine not being entertained by this movie. I left it feeling great.