News arrived today that Morgan Creek are hoping to get a third Ace Ventura movie off the ground, without Jim Carrey in the lead. The film's premise has Ace's son continuing the family pet detective agency. Feel free to scream. We've already suffered a Carrey-less sequel (Son Of The Mask, hideous) and even a prequel (Dumb & Dumberer, unfunny), with bothing proving to be box office duds... so why anyone thinks audiences want to see Jim Carrey sequels without Jim Carrey in them is beyond me...Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) was Carrey's breakout role, and perhaps his most iconic performance. Up until then Carrey had been a supporting actor in dozens of 80s movies and had found cult success on US sketch show In Living Color. Ace catapulted him to superstardom. I remember watching the trailer to Ace Ventura and immediately sensing the birth of a new comedy legend... such a unique and brave performance. The movie itself is sloppy and has that low-budget feel, but it doesn't matter whenever Carrey's onscreen. He's a magnetic and electric performer, and quite clearly having so much fun it's infectious.
1994 proved to be a Golden Year for Carrey. Hot on the heels of Ace Ventura he starred in The Mask, a superhero comedy that is perhaps my favourite Carrey movie. Here he got to show a more measured performance as bank clerk Stanley Ipkiss, before exploding into a slicker Ace-like character thanks to a magical mask (complete with then-groundbreaking visual effects.) It's a brilliant film, most memorable for Carrey's performance and the effects, although the excellent cartoon/superhero/gangster feel deserves plaudits. Oh, and Cameron Diaz has never been sexier.
Again in 1994, Carrey completed his triple-whammy with Dumb & Dumber, the Farrelly Brothers' movie debut and the film that spearheaded the 90s resurgence of gross-out comedy. Carrey was more restrained physically and also proved he could share the limelight with a comedy partner (Jeff Daniels) and wasn't the screen-hog Ace Ventura and The Mask might suggest.
In a year Carrey had become the most successful comedian on the planet, a triumphant success that brought him a high-profile role in the next Batman movie. In Batman Forever (1995) he played criminal mastermind The Riddler, a role that fit snugly, although he was effectively just playing Ace Ventura in a green leotard.
It was around this time that I began to suspect Carrey to be a one-trick pony, and the release of Ace Ventura When Nature Calls (1995) seemed to prove this. I remember hating this movie, particularly as it signalled the end of Carrey's golden run of movies. He no longer had the Midas Touch. The bigger budget of Ace 2 just meant a lazy rehash of catchphrases strung around a turgid plot. There are a few sequences that raise a smile (spear hit, the rhino "birth") but it's mostly a terrible waste.
The Cable Guy (1996) showed us the darker side of Carrey's comedy, with him playing a lisping cable repairman who forms an unhealthy friendship with Matthew Broderick. Directed by Ben Stiller, the film was a massive flop on release, but it's a significant film in Carrey's career. It probably taught him humility, and in subsequent years it has grown in stature to become a cult favourite.
In 1997 Carrey attempted to get back on track by re-teaming with his Ace Ventura director Tom Shadyac for Liar, Liar; a high-concept comedy about a lawyer who finds himself magically compelled to always tell the truth. I enjoyed this movie a great deal, although the premise took centre stage over Carrey's antics in my opinion. It's obvious the script was reworked to shoehorn in some characteristic Carrey pratfalls, but it just about survives this retooling.
But it was with The Truman Show in 1998 that Carrey finally proved he was capable of more than just mugging to camera and falling over. This is an utterly brilliant film and one that prophesized the millennial birth of reality TV shows like Big Brother. Superb in almost every way, it's the best film Carrey's ever been in. End of story.
For me, Carrey seemed to get lost for the next few years. With new credibility, his next serious film Simon Birch went completely unnoticed, and Man On The Moon (1999) was similarly unsuccessful. I've never seen Man On The Moon for two reasons; one, a bio-pic of a comedian I didn't t know didn't sound appealing; and two, I actually know someone who went to see this and walked out half-way through! I'm sure Carrey did a great job of impersonating Andy Kaufmann, but this didn't grab me in any way...
Perhaps sensing fan disappointment (starved of "classic Carrey" since 1995), he re-teamed with the Farrelly Brothers for Me, Myself & Irene (2000). But what should have been a hilarious bad taste comedy ended up being fitfully amusing but ultimately laborious. Again, there are some good moments, but I found the film far too OTT for my taste and Carrey's "Hank" alter-ego was actually quite weak.
The same year, Carrey donned full body make-up to play The Grinch in How The Grinch Stole Christmas. For non-US audiences, the appeal of this Dr Seuss story isn't quite so recognised, so I remember this movie being ignored somewhat. Carrey certainly gave a good performance, but his first pure kids film didn't make much of an impression on me.
It was quite a hectic time for Carrey, as the underwhelming run reached its nadir with The Majestic –- a Kafka-esque drama that is probably Carrey's biggest failure (just not as famously unsuccessful as Cable Guy). Fortunately, Carrey made an unofficial "comeback" with Bruce Almighty (2003), another high-concept comedy about a reporter who is given God's powers. As with Liar, Liar, the fantastic premise was the real star, and Carrey's more wilder antics were kept in check most of the time, but this is essentially a good, fun movie.
Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004) possibly contains Carrey's best serious performance, although Truman fans might contest this. Whatever your view, Carrey is still very good as a spurned lover who discovers his girlfriend is having him erased from her memory. It was another high-concept film, but Carrey was well-suited to the role.
As if it find balance, Carrey also filmed Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events the same year. It was another children's comedy (with a smattering of darkness for adults) like The Grinch, which probably alienated fans of Ace and Dumb & Dumber, but it was still nice to see Carrey back on form (even if only a few moments hit the spot for me.)
His latest film, 2005's Fun With Dick & Jane, I have yet to see, so I can't comment. But the premise of married couple becoming criminals didn’t interest me, and the reviews were poor to middling.
Carrey's next projects are; The Number 23, about a man who finds a book that seems to recount his own life; and Used Guys, a comedy set in a future world ruled by women, where two "pleasure clones" (Carrey and Ben Stiller) escape to try and find the mythical Mantopia.
Both new projects sound good, but it's clear the outrageous physical comedy and face-pulling comedythat typified Jim Carrey in the 90s now seem to be gone. It's a shame, because I think Carrey's at his funniest when he's in "the zone" and able to sink his teeth into a larger-than-life role that demands an energetic performance. He's clearly a talented serious actor, and undoubtedly wants to give more complex performances (even in comedy) but... I hope age isn't the factor here and the 44-year-old feels compelled to grab a movie by the scruff of its neck like his did way back in 1994 with his pet detective...
And, oh yeah, don't make Ace Ventura 3 without Jim Carrey you silly, silly, silly people...
