First Hit: A sophomoric film played by someone who graduated to adulthood a long time ago.
Jim Carrey reaches back to the type of humor that made him famous, over the top facial expressions, goofy dialogue and pratfalls. Carrey has tried drama based films and although he was OK, he never really made a mark as a dramatic actor.
Good comedic actors use more that odd facial expression, goofy dialogue and pratfalls. They use crisp funny dialogue, subtle expressions, and physical movement which can enhance a scene (Think Peter Sellers in Being There).
The problem with Carrey is that he’s getting too old to be limited to pratfall acting. In Yes Man Carrey plays Carl Allen a low level loan officer who says no to everything that comes his way. Because of this he spends his time alone and watching rented DVDs.
As his life is slipping away by alienating his friends by not being available he wakes up on day by going to a “Yes” seminar. During the seminar he makes a convenient with the leader to say yes to everything. While doing this he finds himself in funny circumstances which end up enhancing his life. Along the way he meets Zooey Deschanel who is a cute quirky girl who embraces life, just like the new “Yes Man” Carl.
One thing that didn’t fit was the lack of chemistry and comedic circumstances that didn’t work.
Although some of the circumstances and scenes were truly funny, the film was mixed with lack luster drama and funny bits. The movie seemed more like scenes patched together to make a film. Carrey is tiring in this type of role and I wonder what he’ll do next. Deschanel was cute and was more believable than Carrey.
Overall: Aside from a few big laughs, this form of comedy for Carrey has worn out its welcome mat.