Jim Carrey: Best And Worst

[NSL]

Jim Carrey is seemingly in the middle of a career revival, with Horton Hears A Who and Yes Man that have already been released, and A Christmas Carol due out at the end of the year, jsut in time for the holidays.

On that note, what do you think are his best, and worst, movies?


I'm a huge Jim Carrey fan, and have always been upset about him being simply called a comedy actor. In all of his comedies, he does some spectacular acting, in addition to the comedy. He also does a great job in his non-comedic roles (Majestic, The Number 23).

My favorite, and his best movie, in my opinion, will always be The Truman Show. It's a serious movie, accented by some brilliant comedy, and tells a fantastic story. Truman Burbank is one of the most well-rounded characters of Jim Carrey's career, and no one can watch that movie without feeling some sort of compassion for him. It starts out rather simple, but builds upon itself until a brilliant climax, and ends with a proverbial middle finger waving in the air.

The movie that I consider to be his worst, is Fun With Dick And Jane. Don't get me wrong. I laugh, and laugh hard every time that I see it, but the acting does nothing for me. Dick Harper is basically an amalgamum of all of Jim Carrey's characters packed in to one spurned businessman. Tea Leoni wasn't right for her role, and didn't have any chemistry with him on-screen. The story is a remake, which normally spells trouble as is, but it never lived up to the original. With the cast the movie had, it could've been so much better.

 

[klunderbunker]

For worst I'll go with the Majestic. The movie tries to make a serious tone but it just never got going for me. It's a concept that i've seen in other movies such as Sommersby which did a much better job at it. Carey is ok in it I guess but overall the movie just didn't work for me.

For best it's a pretty easy choice for me: Liar, Liar. This movie is just awesomely funny. Carey is only over the top at one point in it which is the bathroom scene but outside of that he's relatively low key which is something I greatly prefer in comedy. The cast is good, the plot is brilliant and the jokes just work all over. Anytime it's on I check it out. Great movie all over.

 

[NSL]

For best it's a pretty easy choice for me: Liar, Liar. This movie is just awesomely funny. Carey is only over the top at one point in it which is the bathroom scene but outside of that he's relatively low key which is something I greatly prefer in comedy. The cast is good, the plot is brilliant and the jokes just work all over. Anytime it's on I check it out. Great movie all over.

While you have a right to your (wrong ) opinion of The Majestic, I agree 100% with your assessment of Liar, Liar. There was no need to go over the top, and the supporting cast helped a ton. The scene in the bathroom was necessary to the story, and needed to be over the top, so it was perfectly fine to go on like he did. There was another scene that was a little over the top, but it was still important to showing the story. The scene where he is trying to say "The pen is red!". They went a bit far with him screaming at his arm "Write it! Write it, or I'll break it off!", but it helped to show how far the wish went. Unnecessary? Absolutely. Funny as hell? You bet.

 

[RBH]

Liar Liar is it for me when it comes to Jim carrey's best movie. I could not stop laughing and he was amazingly hilarious in that movie. It really was enjoyable to see him in that movie all together with. I loved the plot and I loved his acting and mannerisms.

For worst, I would have to say tie between Fun with Dick and Jane and Batman Forever. Because in both movies, he tries to be something he is not, a comical bad guy. It never quite fit his persona and I am not just saying that because Batman Forever sucked, I am saying that because I believed that his performance sucked. True story.

 

[NSL]

For worst, I would have to say tie between Fun with Dick and Jane and Batman Forever. Because in both movies, he tries to be something he is not, a comical bad guy. It never quite fit his persona and I am not just saying that because Batman Forever sucked, I am saying that because I believed that his performance sucked. True story.

Here's my problem with people saying Batman Forever was a bad movie for Jim Carrey.

Yes, he was playing a comedic villain. The comedy is necessary, as the guy's name was The Riddler. The psychology of the character though, portrays him as not believing he is a bad guy. He does the things that he does, to be amusing to himself, along the lines of how the Joker's brain works, but not nearly as sinister. Joker does it to be evil, Riddler does it to laugh.

His acting may not have been the best, but it is a comic book movie. He played the character well, or as well as the script and, story, would allow. Clearly not his best work, but not his worst.

 

[RBH]

Meh, it was not Jim Carreyish. At the time, he was a strictly comedic actor, (maybe he still is in some ways). I have not yet seen Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (I know what the fuck is wrong with me). But from what I heard, he does a good job of acting with drama and a small mix of comedy sort of what Adam Sandler does in Click. At the time, he was seen as the Mask, Ace Ventura and of course the man from Liar, Liar.

 

[NSL]

Meh, it was not Jim Carreyish. At the time, he was a strictly comedic actor, (maybe he still is in some ways). I have not yet seen Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind(I know what the fuck is wrong with me). But from what I heard, he does a good job of acting with drama and a small mix of comedy sort of what Adam Sandler does in Click. At the time, he was seen as the Mask, Ace Ventura and of course the man from Liar, Liar.

This would have been listed here by me, but it's more than just my favorite Jim Carrey movie. It's my favorite movie, and happens to have Jim Carrey in it. The story-telling is fantastic, and the acting will blow your mind. There's pieces of comedy in it, but these days, every movie does. Some of it's subtle, but it doesn't get in the way. The ending literally brought me to tears. The movie as a whole is extremely close to the heart, and can be seen as a true testament of love. The script was perfect, and the entire cast is like a supporting cast to each other. They work well off of each other, and no one shines brighter than the rest.

I'd suggest you see it when you have the chance. It may not be as "powerful" to you, but I don't know anyone that hasn't enjoyed watching it.

 

[RBH]

I am pretty sure I would enjoy it. I like movies that relate to different characters and different storylines in seperate fashions. But I do agree with you, it seems like he is making a career comeback and I for one am happy for him. Usually when A-List stars run out of steam, they move on to TV. Not to say that TV is a bad thing but Carrey is a movie star and should stay a movie star for as long as he wants and not be regulated to television. (Only when he wants).

 

[My$terio_Fan]

I also think Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind was Carey's best work to date. When he did not get a Oscar nomination(yet Winslet did)I was pretty mad. He was able to do the dramatic parts perfectly and was perfect with the little bits of comedy infused. I really loved his performance and though Winslet and Carey's chemistry worked and Carey was believeable. It was a huge Oscar snub(just like The Truman Show)imo.

As for the worst, I really don't have one. I'm not a huge fan of Carey because he and his characters just annoy me. I guess Dick & Jane was a mediocre performance but I don't blame Carey the film just didn't work well.

 

[Mr. TM]

Best- Ace Venture: When Nature Calls. The sequel to The Pet Detective, Jim Carrey plays Ace, an animal lover/expert on the hunt for a rare spiritual back for the Machabia? people. along the way, he is met with Australian poachers, warring tribes, and the African jungle. A great movie, that as a kid was incredibly funny.

Worst- Liar, Liar. I watched it when I was younger and I don't think I laughed. I did not find it the least bit funny and was the first time at the time in my life that I thought my countryman was not funny.

Jim Carrey is a comedian. He started out as one in Canada, moved to America to get rich, did that in Comedy movies, and has since tried to make money in other genres.

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

I havent seen a ton of Jim Carrey so I dont have alot to choose from but the best for me is Dumb and Dumber and the worst is Fun with Dick and Jane.

Dumb and Dumber is a classic, probably one of my top 10 comedies of all time. There are so many classic quotes many of which come from Carrey. One of my favorites is "Give it to me straight, what are the chanes of us getting together....1 in a 100?" she responds with "No more like 1 in a million". Then he pauses and you think he is gonna be upset but he responds excitedly with "So you're telling me there's a chance!". lol I say that all the time.

As much as I liked Dumb and Dumber that's how much I hated Dick and Jane. I thought that was absolutely terrible, I honestly dont think there was a single part that even made me snicker. Horrible movie.

 

[klunderbunker]

I completely forgot about Dumb and Dumber. It truly is the worst Carrey movie. Why you ask? Simple: it's not funny at all. The movie is just stupid in every aspect, from the plot to the cast to what the cast does. Show me a funny scene in this movie. I dare you. It put me to sleep. This movie is the reason I usually can't stand Jim Carrey.