VH1 Where Are They Now: Calling Jim Carrey’s Sense of Humor

For a brief moment in the 1990s, Jim Carrey was the end-all, be-all of American humor. Kids aged 10 to 16 lined around the block to check out new releases like The Mask, Ace Ventura, and Liar, Liar. Alas, these movies are now relegated to satellite TV and cable, and we’ve seen precious little of Carrey’s hilarity in recent years. The real question is: did Jim outgrow us, or did we outgrow Jim?

It all began with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. This is one of the seminal movies of our collective lifetime, a film filled with emotion, wit, and animals running around all over the room. More than anything else, it was laugh out loud funny. You never knew what kind of antic Carrey would come up with next, or what ridiculous outfit he would end up wearing. Add a cameo appearance by Dan Marino, and you have the recipe for a great flick.

Next came Dumb and Dumber, another movie that has made its way into the pantheon of classic American humor. Along with Jeff Daniels, Carrey played an ignoramus traipsing around Colorado getting himself into trouble. Here’s an example: a sports neophyte, Carrey’s character ends up with his tongue stuck to the chair lift at a ski resort. How’s that for hilarity?

According to most critics, things started to turn south with The Cable Guy, also featuring Matthew Broderick. While the critical acclaim might have been lacking (many thought the movie was too “dark”), the majority of audiences loved the act. Carrey played a (you guessed it) “Cable Guy” who develops a man-crush on Broderick after installing his home theater system (including HD TV, HiFi stereo, karaoke system, etc.) for free. The entire movie is absolutely ridiculous, but remains funny throughout.

Perhaps in response to the critics, the next movie Carrey made was Liar, Liar, a rather sophomoric tale about a lawyer who suddenly finds himself unable to lie. It might have been an accurate depiction of the legal profession, but the humor just didn’t translate to this new role. While it found success in theatres, appreciation of this one hasn’t lasted to this day like most of his other early movies.

After these huge blockbuster successes, Carrey moved to more serious fare, like the Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. These movies are great, and reveal Carrey’s aptitude as a respectable actor, but the kid in you has to wonder where he really went. Anyone who grew up to Ace Ventura on repeat can quote lines from the movie by the dozen, so it almost seems like “real acting” stole Jim away. Of course, you have to understand his development, but it’s still a rather hard pill to swallow.

Today, these movies are in gorgeous HD, available on pay per view and at your local video store. If you have satellite TV as I do, you can also catch them on Direct TV's many movie channels. A viewing in chronological order will do much to open your eyes to Jim Carrey’s comic evolution. Just don’t expect any new releases to match his former brilliance.