“Drop Dead Fred” is an aggressively unfunny comedy that feels like “Beetlejuice” meets “Problem Child”. It’s an unpleasant watch filled with a morally and emotionally confused plot and a disastrous performance from Rik Mayall (“Guest House Paradiso”).

Elizabeth Cronin (Phoebe Cates “Gremlins”, “Private School”) loses her husband, her car and her job in the space of just one day. Her childhood imaginary friend, ‘Drop Dead Fred’ (Mayall), has now returned and he’s causing more mischief than ever. Elizabeth tries to get her life back together while having to deal with the crazy antics of Drop Dead Fred. She must learn more about herself if she is to succeed.

Rik Mayall is just awful as Drop Dead Fred. I get that he’s meant to be annoying but there’s nothing fun about his performance. Some of the special effects when he gets his face squashed or has his eyes pop out are okay but they have not aged as well as the effects in “The Mask” with Jim Carrey. Phoebe Cates is actually pretty good as the downtrodden Elizabeth. We see poor Cates get terrorised by this obnoxious, vile and annoying monstrosity that is Drop Dead Fred. He wipes snot on her face and constantly gets her into trouble. The two have no chemistry whatsoever. Carrie Fisher (“Star Wars”, “The ‘Burbs”) has a role as Elizabeth’s friend and she’s actually really funny. The rest of the characters are rather dull and forgettable.

“Drop Dead Fred” is a real chore to watch. It’s such a shame to see good performances from Cates and Fisher just get violently trampled by Rik Mayall. The whole concept of the film is pretty lame and the execution is even worse. Originally, Robin Williams (“Flubber”) was offered the role and I think he would have given a much more enjoyable performance. In Mayall’s defence, the script is horrendous so he has very little to work with. Avoid “Drop Dead Fred” if you value your sanity.