Bruce Almighty

February 14, 2004

Oh, Jim Carrey, why do you vex me so?

Jim Carrey still irritates me. Oh, there was a time when Jim Carrey was alright by me: Once Bitten, Earth Girls are Easy, In Living Color. I was even okay with Ace Ventura and The Mask. But soon after that, he went from being Jim Carrey to being JIM!CARREY! He stopped acting and just became the pure embodiment of JIM!CARREY!ness. It became totally impossible to separate JIM!CARREY! from the characters he played. While it doesn’t mean he can’t be entertaining, it sure doesn’t make him a good actor – in fact, I would hesitate to call him an actor at all. He’s more of a brand name…

As much as I wanted to hate Bruce Almighty, I couldn’t hate it. It had all the elements that I try to avoid in films: heavy-handed religious parables, a Friends cast member, Jim Carrey. I just couldn’t stop laughing though. The anal dwelling butt monkey. The dog. The homeless man. Jennifer Aniston’s increasing bustline. Steve Carrell speaking in tongues.

Steve Carrell better not leave The Daily Show. But I know he will…he’s just been cast as the seedy boss in the upcoming US version of The Office. He’s the one thing that might keep the show from bombing.

Here’s to hoping that JIM!CARREY! chills the fuck out and becomes Jim Carrey the actor someday.