| BRUCE ALMIGHTY |
 2003 - USADirector:
Tom Shadyac - Reviewed by Vickie
Based on the trailers, one would be inclined to think that Jim Carrey’s latest big-screen comedy is a goofy, slightly raunchy look at what happens when an average Joe gets (and subsequently abuses) the power of God. Instead, the surprisingly sweet film follows a discouraged Buffalo news correspondent named Bruce Nolan (Carrey), who questions the nature of the Almighty (Morgan Freeman), is bestowed with His powers and winds up learning about faith, prayer and himself in the process. Feeling slighted after a series of unfortunate events, Bruce rails against the heavens and demands that God explain Himself. Shortly thereafter, he does find himself face to face with God, who thinks it might be a good idea for Bruce to learn about the nature of Divine power by trying it on for size. And sure, the oft-played trailer clips of Bruce blowing up a woman’s skirt or enhancing the size of girlfriend Jennifer Aniston’s breasts are all part of his newfound fun. But so are the millions of hopes, prayers and needs of everyone else. Helping thyself is entertaining, but bearing the burden of trying to make everyone happy proves to be a bit of a challenge, as Bruce soon discovers. In addition to the film’s kind-of-mushy core are some laugh-riot moments that have become staples in Carrey’s films. This time around, though, some of the biggest laughs come from the supporting players. Steve Carrell (of TV’s "The Daily Show") had me crying—crying!—with laughter. Aniston, meanwhile, holds her own against her manic leading man in a role that’s borderline saintly, but doesn’t give her the chance to do much more than a variation on her Rachel Greene character from "Friends." Overall, the movie makes for some light-hearted viewing that has more heart than you’d expect. Leave it to Carrey to sneak an underlying thoughtful tone to a high-concept, box-office hit that will lure his devout audience in and then surprise them with a story that’s equal parts laughs and life lessons. |
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Marketing strategies always intrigue me. By watching a trailer for a
film, you can pretty much tell which demographic the advertising folks
might be targeting. Sometimes they nail it. Sometimes they don’t. And
many times, as in the case of Bruce Almighty, they wind up kind of
misrepresenting the movie they’re trying to promote.
