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Do you remember when you were young and folks kept asking “What
do you want to be when you grow up?” You probably said anything
and everything you could think of but weren’t really sure of. Even
to this day, if you are grown up already, you still want to be someone
you can’t. At times, it may have been a great singer, or a great
athlete, or an occupation you physically can’t do. It’s funny that
the one person or job no one ever says they want to be or do is
that of GOD. What if you had all the powers in the universe with
no one to challenge your authority? Wouldn’t it be great to know
everything like the Greek God Zeus? Well, the producing team that
made “Liar Liar” a few years ago with the “What if” concept have
come up with a similar theme to the God complex. Jim Carrey, who
starred in “Liar Liar”, gets to play God in Bruce Almighty, a pleasurable
film that that loses some steam down the stretch but is ultimately
fun for a period of time.
Bruce Nolan (Carrey) is a beat reporter for a TV station in Buffalo,
NY. Every reporter’s dream is to move up the ladder and land an
anchor job before moving to a bigger network. Bruce isn’t just a
mild reporter. Having to cover situations that no one wants is demoralizing
and boring, but with his high spirits, Bruce is committed to his
job. Having his wife Grace (Aniston) support him while he’s upset
with his life is comforting to a point. On the day he’s vying for
the anchor position that became available due to a retirement, Bruce’s
hopes are high. For instance, he gets to cover something live for
once, which boosts his ego. He doesn’t care that it involves interviewing
senior citizens by Niagara Falls. His hopes are dashed when he finds
out at the worst time that he didn’t the get and it went to his
fiercest competitor and colleague Evan (Steven Carell). Having lost
his job for going nuts while live on TV, Bruce takes his frustations out on the Man
Upstairs as his source for failures. Enter Morgan Freeman as the
“The Almighty”. He decides to let Bruce in on his world and transfers
his powers to him while he takes a vacation for once. Feeling omnipotent,
Bruce tries his newfound “gift” on his wife Grace and it works like
a charm. Before you know it, Bruce is out to please himself at home
and work while letting zillions of prayers go unanswered. When he
sees the ripple effects of his “moves” and how it affects the town
of Buffalo, Bruce sees that the role of God is more than he thought
it would be.
Jim Carrey is very amusing when he does this sort of slapstick
comedy. On the heels of his last film, the disappointing “The Majestic”,
it’s interesting that he still wants to go the Frank Capra route.
“Bruce Almighty”, in some ways is similar to “It’s A Wonderful
Life”. Life is not what it seems when you want it your way. As funny
as Director Shadyac had Carrey be, he left no room for any of the
supporting players to breathe. Aniston, who made a big stride in
the industry in “The Good Girl” is relegated to playing the formulaic
girlfriend who doesn’t the like the changes in her man. Catherine
Bell, who’s on TVs JAG, is in and out of scenes as if she was playing
jump rope. Morgan Freeman is playing the role of God as he plays
his other roles. He’s cool, composed, and in command of what’s needed
to put things in shape like Bruce’s life. Towards the end, the film
loses its wit and Carrey chews the scenery too many times. To some,
this is the Carrey they want, funny and very laugh out loud, and
for others, the film doesn’t take the issue of being God too seriously,
although it’s a comedy. Bruce Almighty is still pleasant to see
when one you want a comedic flair of seeing God as a human.
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