KEY POINTS:
Rating:
* *
Verdict:
Old-school, half-hearted Jim Carrey comedy
The idea for
Yes Man
is based on the memoir by English comedian Danny Wallace, the execution, however, harks back to Jim Carrey's work in films like
Liar, Liar
, and
Bruce Almighty
.
Carrey's character, Carl Allen, is a disconnected and divorced bank worker who would rather sit at home watching DVDs than see his mates or go out. A random encounter with an old school friend sees him attend a self help course where he's terrorised by its presenter Terrence Bundley (Stamp) into becoming a "Yes Man". That is, making good on the idea of always saying yes to everything.
Carl becomes convinced that if he says "no", bad things will happen to him, so he finds himself saying yes to learning the guitar, learning how to fly, learning Korean, and getting blow jobs from his elderly neighbour. You get the picture.
Yes Man
showcases Carrey's trademark goofy facial expressions and physical comedy, but even Carrey gives the impression it's just a rehash of his previous work, or perhaps he too wasn't convinced that he can make this average script work.
Carrey also looks a little old and out of place. His love interest is the fresh faced Zooey Deschanel and, while they do have a sweet understated chemistry that pleasantly distracts from the film's one gag, it just doesn't look quite right.
It's the same with his best friend played by Bradley Cooper, and Carrey also has to fight for the screen against New Zealand actor Rhys Darby (
The Flight of the Conchords
) whose similar style is a reminder for Carrey that there are plenty of young, talented up-and-comers after his job.
While Carrey fans may find something for them,
Yes Man
is half-hearted, light on laughs, lacking in sincerity, and restricted by its predictable premise. Yes, he's made this movie before but no, it's not an improvement on previous attempts.
Francesca Rudkin
Cast:
Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel, Rhys Darby, Terrence Stamp
Director:
Peyton Reed
Running time:
105 mins
Rating:
M (offensive language, sexual references)
Screening:
Skycity, Hoyts Berkeley cinemas.