I Just Watched (Films)

[Animalmother]

The fact that they were both bollock naked?

[Stormbringer]

It was more the fiery backdrop, but that is a good point.

[Wrathbone]

Liar Liar

Hadn’t seen this since I was a teenager and our long-term stand-in RE teacher, Mr Johnson (who was actually a PE teacher), showed it to us on some flimsy basis about the morals of lying*. It’s not aged well, or perhaps I haven’t. I don’t mind Jim Carrey in general, even some of his more animated early performances, but in Liar Liar he’s a total lunatic in all the cringiest ways. There are still some funny bits, I just found it hard to reconcile him as a human being.

And the airport scene… good god. In a film involving a mystical inability to lie, this might be the least plausible thing that happens. Even if you accept he’s gone nuts and has thrown all caution to the wind, what exactly is he hoping to achieve by stealing a mobile stairs vehicle and driving it alongside a moving plane? A momentary chance to wave to his kid before he’s either hauled off to Guantanamo Bay or sucked through a jet engine? Total fucking nonsense.

Nostalgia can’t save this one for me, it seems.

4/10


* He once also showed us most of JFK over the course of several weeks, because something something magic bullet = religion maybe?

[Stormbringer]

I never liked Carrey and that film always looked rubbish to me.

[Maturin]

In terms of 90's Jim Carrey comedies, Dumb & Dumber is much better. Although Jeff Daniels is possibly the best part of that film, so it helps shift things away from Carrey for a change.

Liar Liar, they had a handful of funny scenarios but struggled to build a decent film around them. Carrey just starts to get irritating by about halfway through. Far worse 90s comedies though.

[Sly Boots]

Me, Myself & Irene was a bit of an underrated Carrey flick imo.

[Raid]

Even if you accept he’s gone nuts and has thrown all caution to the wind, what exactly is he hoping to achieve by stealing a mobile stairs vehicle and driving it alongside a moving plane? A momentary chance to wave to his kid before he’s either hauled off to Guantanamo Bay or sucked through a jet engine? T

Oh, to live in that world before the September 11th attacks where they could put crazy airport antics on screen and it not feel like the person is committing an act of terrorism.

I'm always in two minds about Jim Carrey. The only two films I really liked him in were Eternal Sunshine and Truman Show, which were both fantastic films that didn't really need him in them. I never saw many of his madcap comedies (I've still never seen either Ace Ventura) at the time, and the ones that I have done (Liar Liar being one) I thought were pretty average.

But then I've also seen the first two Sonic the Hedgehog films and he completely steals the screen from the bright blue animated hedgehog. Those films would be near unwatchable without him chewing the scenery for all he's worth, and he genuinely elevates them.

[Sly Boots]

Even if you accept he’s gone nuts and has thrown all caution to the wind, what exactly is he hoping to achieve by stealing a mobile stairs vehicle and driving it alongside a moving plane? A momentary chance to wave to his kid before he’s either hauled off to Guantanamo Bay or sucked through a jet engine? T

Oh, to live in that world before the September 11th attacks where they could put crazy airport antics on screen and it not feel like the person is committing an act of terrorism.

I'm always in two minds about Jim Carrey. The only two films I really liked him in were Eternal Sunshine and Truman Show, which were both fantastic films that didn't really need him in them. I never saw many of his madcap comedies (I've still never seen either Ace Ventura) at the time, and the ones that I have done (Liar Liar being one) I thought were pretty average.

But then I've also seen the first two Sonic the Hedgehog films and he completely steals the screen from the bright blue animated hedgehog. Those films would be near unwatchable without him chewing the scenery for all he's worth, and he genuinely elevates them.

You should definitely watch Dumb & Dumber and The Mask, pretty much Carrey at his comedy peak.

[Raid]

I've seen The Mask, it was... alright I guess?

[ManBearSquid]

I second Me, Myself and Irene. Outrageous and hilarious.

I love Dumb & Dumber, even beyond the nostalgia. Ace Ventura is definitely more over the top, but I do like them as the daft films that they are.

I've never seen Eternal Sunshine, but I don't think it's fair to write him off as unnecessary for Truman Show as I think he legitimately puts in a thoughtful performance in that movie. At the time of release, it was such and oddity to me as I only knew him as the goofball, and the film didn't truly resonate with me until I was a bit older.

[Raid]

What I meant is that The Truman Show wasn't really a Jim Carrey vehicle. He was fantastic in it, don't get me wrong, but it's not one of the traditional mad-cap comedies that Carrey's built his career on and I think you could replace him with another actor and it would still be the same film. I don't think you could say the same about The Mask.

[Alan]

Always had a soft spot for Cable Guy and Ace Ventura 2 though having watched neither in 20 years I reserve some rights. I never got everyone going gaga over Eternal Sunshine, it wasnt great.

[Wrathbone]

I gave up on Eternal Sunshine half way through. Didn't work for me at all.

[Sly Boots]

I liked Eternal Sunshine, but haven't rewatched it since the first time.

[Raid]

I've not seen it more than once either.

I watched Fellowship of the Ring last night, the version that's three and a half hours long and has an additional 25 minutes of credits afterwards. I think it's only the second time I've seen this version, despite having owned the DVD set for probably more than 20 years (not that I watched the DVD copy, I had a blu-ray), and I wasn't sure whether I'd end up turning it off at the half way mark to finish off another day. I think most of us would agree that 210 minutes is usually too many minutes for one film, but at no point did this drag. I'm not intimately familiar with this trilogy, I probably watch it every four or five years, other than a couple of scenes I couldn't tell which bits were added back in after the theatrical cut.

I think every time I watch a film this well regarded, I wonder whether it's going to feel a bit overrated, or aged maybe, but this is still absolutely spellbinding, and it maintains that across the entire runtime.