Review: ‘Yes Man’

Jeremy:

Jim Carrey is back doing the comedy that he does best. Â  He has taken his pilgrimage to the land of Drama, and he has reaped the great accolades that are to be had there. Â  Now, he’s gone back to what brought him to the dance, the great physical comedy that we really haven’t seen from Mr. Carrey in over a decade. Â  ‘Yes Man’ is a hilarious film from start to finish. Â  Most of this is due to the great performance by Carrey, but it is such a broader comedy than to just fall on his singular shoulders. Â  On top of being an uproarious comedy, ‘Yes Man’ is pure and simple a good movie.

Carrey plays Carl Allen, a junior loan officer who has made it a habit of saying “no” to people and generally avoiding casual interaction altogether. Â  After an encounter with an old friend, played the highly underused John Michael Higgins, Carl decides to visit a sort of self-help seminar. Â  Run by Terrency Bundley, played by Terrence Stamp, the seminar teaches one how to avoid letting opportunity pass them by by essentially saying “yes” to everything. Â  Carl takes this to heart, and begins doing just that. Â  He begins turning down absolutely nothing, accepting every invitation and saying “yes” to every act of charity someone brings to him.

First and foremost, the story in ‘Yes Man’ is deftly crafted. Â  Written by a trio of screenwriters (Nicholas Stoller, Jarrad Paul, and Andrew Mogel) and based on the book by Danny Wallace, the story is wound pretty tight for a physical comedy. Â  Much of what Carl says “yes” to comes back later on in the film to help him in some way or another. Â  You always have this idea that everything he does will come back to him in the back of your head, but it’s never predictably foreshadowing. Â  Like a gifted stand-up comedian, the story calls back to previous events without letting you know for a second where it is going.

Director Peyton Reed’s last comedy was 2006’s ‘The Break-Up’, a film whose comedy was marred by two people essentially screaming at one another for two hours. Â  With ‘Yes Man’, he has put together a comedy where just about everyone in the film is likable.

Carrey is backed up by an incredible supporting cast. Â  I can’t think of a cuter actress working today than Zooey Deschanel. Â  But, let’s not kid ourselves. Â  This is a Jim Carrey comedy, and all eyes are on him. Â  Going into this film, I was concerned that it was going to be two hours of Jim Carrey acting like Jim Carrey in an effort at making a Jim Carrey comedy. Â  Imagine my surprise to find Carrey basically playing the straight man to all the off-the-wall people around him.

Rhys Darby plays Norman, the manager of the bank Carl works at. Â  He’s goofy and abnormal. Â  He’s the kind of guy who throws a “Dress as your favorite Harry Potter character” party, but he’s so likable that the party has a dozen people show up to it. Â  Darby plays the part with absolute gusto, never looking back or appearing to doubt his character legitimacy.

Stamp has this way of playing an eccentric Brit better than anyone on the face of the planet, and he does just that here. Â  I only wish there were more of him in the film. Â  You will never laugh harder at a man sprinting towards another man just to talk to him.

Carrey is funny, but that is to be expected. Â  He also plays the sweet and somewhat dramatic card here, too, and he hasn’t balanced all of this this well in over a decade. Â  This is by far his best comedic performance since ‘Liar, Liar’ and possibly ever. Â  What is great also is that when he is being funny, it’s not just a matter of Jim Carrey acting goofy for goofy’s sake. Â  He’s always reacting to something that is happening to him. Â  This is no more evident than in the scenes where Carl is either ossified drunk or hopped up on Red Bull energy drink. Â  Trust me, that scene is so much funnier than the trailer leads it on to be.

‘Yes Man’ is one of the funniest movies of the year. Â  A lot has been said in recent reviews for comedies about how many have come this year. Â  2008 has been a banner year for the comedy, and not just in quantity, either. Â  Some of the funniest movies in recent memory have come out this year, and to say that ‘Yes Man’ is one of the funniest is really saying something. Â  It’s a comedy with a heart, but it never allows itself to be too sweet or muddled in heavy-handed messages. Â  That message is there, but it’s subtly presented, never thrown into your face.

With Jim Carrey leading the way, ‘Yes Man’ is an extremely humorous gift just in time for Christmas. Â  If this is to be Carrey’s first in another long line of comedies, they will be gladly accepted.

[Overall: 4.5 stars out of 5]

Travis:

Did I enjoy this movie? Yes! Should you enjoy this movie? Yes! Should I stop asking myself questions? Yes!

Jim Carrey’s newest comedy vehicle is better than I expected and well worth buying a ticket for, if your in the mood to go see a comedy. Much like Carrey’s ‘Liar, Liar’ this film is funny but not over-the-top. I actually think ‘Yes Man’ is even more successful than ‘Liar, Liar’ in that it does an even better job of highlighting Carrey’s finer comedic qualities and nuances while leaving most of the unnecessary double-jointed silliness aside. However, the physically adept comedy of Carrey is put to use sparingly in appropriate moments.

‘Yes Man’ is about Carl (Carrey), a guy whose wife divorced him and now he spends every waking moment alone and apathetic, making excuses and saying “no” to every opportunity he gets to do anything but stay up late in his apartment watching stacks of DVD rentals. Carl has a bad attitude, zero people skills and is stuck in a dead end job. That is, until he happens to bump into a former employee who drags him to a self-help seminar run by an eccentric old guru, played by the legendary Terrence Stamp.

Carl is encouraged to take on a covenant with himself to always to “Yes!” to every offer, every opportunity, everything that comes along… no mater what it is. The theory is that by saying “no” he’s not living his life and opportunity passes him by. So, with a rocky start, Carl begins to slowly embrace this new ideology and things really begin happening in his life. Most notably, he meets Allison (Zooey Deschanel), a quirky spontaneous woman who does what she wants and enjoys life.

Carrey and Deschanel work fairly well together, but I have to admit… I’d watch Deschanel do just about anything. I can’t really explain it, but she is an actress I simply enjoy watching. Not just in this film, but even in ‘Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’ she somehow conveys this aura of being someone who lives life fully and openly. A free spirit, so to speak. Her look, her voice and her demeanor are charming.

‘Yes man’ has many great scenes, but perhaps my favorite is when Carl’s friends get him stupid plastered drunk and he ends up getting into a fight with a guy twice his size over a girl. This does end up being probably the silliest Carrey moment in the film, but it works well. The love story the movie centers on is a good one and has some nice touches, but the story does get a little far-fetched when Carl is arrested in the airport as a suspected terrorist. Don’t worry, I’m not REALLY giving anything away and the reasoning behind this does make sense, but the whole scene sort of has the feeling of being forced into the story just to act as a catalyst to shift the romance story.

Jim Carrey fans will love this movie, Zooey Deschanel fans (are there more of these than just me?) will love this movie and I am happy to say that ‘Yes Man’ does not disappoint. Ask anyone there with me, I laughed through most of the movie.

[Overall: 3.75 stars out of 5]

Michelle:

I can attest to Travis’s laughter….I was sitting right in front of him and he was howling – and rightly so. ‘Yes Man’ is certainly a welcome return to form  by Jim Carrey  at what he does best – comedy. This lighthearted film is a work of fiction inspired by British author Danny Wallace’s memoir. I thought there was much to Carrey’s Carl to cheer for and about. His various goofy expressions and  humorous physical motions  make ‘Yes Man’ more that just a one-note idea. Deschanel and Carrey are a funny romantic pairing – beckons back to Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn in ‘Bringing Up Baby’. I thought they made  for an enjoyable  couple. The  amusing, karmic message of “what goes around comes around”  produces a  feel-good movie during the dreary days of winter.

[Overall: 4 stars out of 5] [Travis’s laughter: 4.5 chuckles out of 5]