Where Did Jim Carrey Go Wrong?

One of my earliest memories is of my father laughing so hard at our TV that he was crying. My father does not cry. Though he’s 100% Irish, he kind of looks like he could smoke Cubans with Tony Soprano. I remember looking up from my toys at my mother, who was standing in the living room archway, equally as stunned as my father slapped his knee and continued to howl at the set. He had cracked. Why? He was watching Dumb & Dumber. It was the chili pepper scene.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7L9THry9QM]

That was almost twenty years ago, and tomorrow Dumber and Dumber To hits theaters. From the looks of it, the sequel probably won’t be reviving Jim Carrey‘s career. It’s one of those sequels fans begged and hoped for for years, but now that it’s here, it all feels a bit pathetic. It’s hard watching a comedic genius revisit a defining role that’s two decades old, only to be scorned by critics and fans alike who can’t help but focus on the age factor and nostalgia for the original. So why did the Farrelly Brothers, Jeff Daniels, and Jim Carrey bother? Nope, not because we needed the Mutt Cuts van to be rescued, but because Jim Carrey simply cannot get out of this rut he’s been in for the last ten years.

Dumb and Dumber To picks up right where Harry (Daniels) and Lloyd (Carrey) left off: turning down gigs as oil boys on a bus filled with sexy Hawaiian Tropic models and Lloyd still heartbroken over Mary Swanson/Samsonite. From what the trailers tell us, they are somehow reunited with their beloved van and on the search for Harry’s long-lost daughter, who Lloyd apparently “has the hots for.” The adventure begins and hilarity is supposed to ensue, but a mismatched M.I.A. track and a cringe-worthy cell phone mix-up scene suggest otherwise.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGXHVlEklgQ]

Yikes.

After a great start on In Living Color (for which he also wrote), 1994 was a career-defining time for Carrey, who starred in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Mask , and Dumb & Dumber all in the same year. After that came the role of Dr. Edward Nygma in Batman Forever, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, and one of his classics: The Cable Guy. Liar Liar also did well, but many fans didn’t embrace Carrey’s sensitive side as much as he hoped for, until The Truman Show, which earned Carrey his first Golden Globe and has become a staple in collegiate media studies classes.

Then came Milos Forman’s Man on the Moon, in which Carrey played comedian Andy Kaufman to a tee and snagged another Golden Globe. Carrey kept charging, making a couple of mediocre flicks including Me, Myself & Irene, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and The Majestic.

Bruce Almighty was solid, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was legendary. Carrey famously plays Joel, a man so heartbroken by Clementine (Kate Winslet), he hires a group of amateur experimental scientists to literally delete her from his brain. After The Truman Show, The Majestic, and now this; it was clear: Jim Carrey can get real.

So what the hell happened?

Similar to the fate of a handful of major comedians in recent years, including Adam Sandler, it seems to be a combination of a few things that ended up creating the perfect storm. First, he started doing more kids movies. The Grinch, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, Horton Hears a Who!, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, and A Christmas Carol were spread out over ten years, but typically came after some of lackluster flicks like Me, Myself & Irene, and The Number 23, which flat-out stunk.

Second, he starred in the remake of Fun with Dick and Jane, which also stunk. Other than Cameron Diaz, Jeff Daniels, Kate Winslet, and Ewan McGregor in the underrated I Love You Phillip Morris, Carrey has had fairly crappy supporting co-stars. Pair that with subpar scripts, and you have one dude holding up an entire film. That’s just not fair.

Finally, he starred in Yes Man, which unofficially marked the end of Jim Carrey. He was horribly miscast alongside Zooey Deschanel and, if the sappy parts of Liar Liar were any indication, romantic comedies and Jim Carrey don’t mix well. Now it’s an endless cycle of a guest TV show appearance here, a brief supporting role there, and now a sequel that surely looks like it will disappoint. How can the comedic face of the ’90s revive himself?

Given his range, it’s totally possible he can turn this around and hop aboard a production worthy of his talents. No more sequels, no more appearances in Anchorman sequels: we just want Jim Carrey to do what he does best, which is let his unabashed intensity roam free. Whether it be comedy or drama, Carrey always delivers, and it would be swell to see him in something that accurately suits him: something that lets him harbor his strengths rather than exploit them, which, unfortunately, has begun to turn him into a caricature of himself.

At this point, Carrey should follow in Bill Murray‘s footsteps. Murray has almost seamlessly weaved in and out of comedy, dramedy, and drama and now, the man is revered for every move he makes. Plays himself in Zombieland? Cool! Pops up in the latest Wes Anderson flick? Sweet! Crashes a random bachelor party? Awesome! Bill Murray can do no wrong!

Something similar seems likely for a comedian of Carrey’s caliber and chances are he’ll get there. It’ll just take some time.

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Photos: Everett Collection