As is typical in most broad comedies, the premise of "Yes Man" is very simple. After his friends have reached the limits of their patience with the closed-off life that he is living, Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) is dragged to a seminar led by self-help guru Terrence Bundley (played with pitch-perfect gusto by Terrence Stamp), who convinces him that the secret to enjoying the fullness of life is to simply say 'yes' to every opportunity that crosses his path. Having set him up sufficiently, the screenplay, by Nicholas Stoller ("Fun with Dick and Jane") and first-time film writers Jarred Paul and Andrew Mogel, then sits back and lets Carrey work his way through the ensuing situations, with frequently amusing results.
To be clear, this is a somewhat toned-down Jim Carrey. He comes nowhere near the spastic slap-stick that earned him early fame in "The Mask" and the "Ace Ventura" movies, opting instead to attempt a more comic-everyman role. While he proves that he can do this effectively, there are times where it becomes obvious that it is very hard for him to control himself on screen. Unfortunately, this can become a little distracting for the audience, since his occasional relapse into his old rubber-faced boobery doesn't quite fit with the character that the movie otherwise wants. Still, to be fair, his willingness to dive head-on into a joke is always impressive.
Bradley Cooper ("Wedding Crashers") clearly had a good time making this movie and that sense of fun is captured well by the camera. In the part of best friend Peter, who seizes the opportunity presented by Allen's new philosophy to place him in numerous precarious situations, he manages to not be completely overshadowed by Carrey, which in itself is worthy of note. Zooey Deschanel ("The Happening") does not fare so well. Granted, her role as zany, free-spirited, love interest Alison, is not terribly exacting or inspired, but she seems to get lost on the screen (even in spite of her impossibly large doe-eyes). It might behoove her to work a little more on her comedy chops before trying another role of this sort.
The stand-out performance, though, is given by Rhys Darby ("Flight of the Conchords"), who absolutely shines as Allen's nebbish boss and aspiring best friend. He attacks the part with such cheerful, naïve, and harmless good intentions that you actual wish you knew someone like this, in spite of his complete lack of social graces.
Viewed as either a comedy, or a Jim Carrey comedy, "Yes Man" certainly doesn't break any new ground. It does, however, deliver some good laughs and as my fellow-viewer put it, "I had a smile on my face pretty much the whole time."
| Movie title | Yes Man |
|---|---|
| Release year | 2008 |
| MPAA Rating | PG-13 |
| Our rating | |
| Summary | Mid-level addition to the sub-genre: "The Jim Carrey Comedy". |
