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Released 26th December 2008
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Put your Jim Carrey reservations to one side, and say a big “yes” to his new comedy because it’s well-worth a look. Peyton Reed’s film manages to combine previous serious and loopy Carrey performances in the one film, with the troubled character of Carl Allen, based on the real-life memoirs of Danny Wallace’s ‘yes-capades’. As they say: there is always a tragic side to humour, and Jim Carrey is the master in portraying this.
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Yes Man begins with Carl denying himself fun or any sort of life, and just ’surviving’ after a divorce in a mundane bank job. A chance encounter with a hyper-active, old friend who has been given inspiration by a self-help guru to say “yes” to everything spurs Carl to do the same with his life, for fear of losing those most dear to him. Carrey delivers the right level of sarcasm, without harming the emotional tragedy and hurt that Carl feels - basically, without losing our interest in wanting to know more about Carl. We still manage to empathise with Carl’s situation, whilst condoning the way he defends it. Carrey’s on-screen buddy chemistry with Bradley Cooper as his loyal and compassionate best friend strengthens this character establishment. In fact, Cooper is quite the expert in playing the ‘encouraging best-friend’ part, after playing opposite Matthew McConaughey in Failure to Launch in 2006.
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After discovering the magic word, “yes”, Carl gingerly starts to loosen up as he realises the positives in doing so. It’s that age-old saying: “Smile and the world smiles with you. Cry and you cry alone”. People like being around positive people, and Carl soon reaps the rewards in his personal and work life. Carrey then embraces literally every challenge thrown at him in the script with an enthusiasm that is both his character’s and his own, and is quite infectious to watch. For the role, Carrey had to master guitar, Korean, body blading and much more - even choosing to do his own bungee jump stunt after lobbying the studio. It’s that positive, dynamic energy that Carrey is best at in all his roles, and it gets given a real outlet in this film.
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The striking-looking and quirky Zooey Deschanel is Carl’s love interest, Renee Allison. Although more open and unconventional, Renee is actually the more restricted character of the pair: She is thrilled to go along on the crazy Carl rides, but actually yearns for normality in her personal life. Renee is equally ‘damaged’ by a past relationship, being on the receiving end of someone like the old Carl. This reversal makes for an intriguing dynamic of opposites attracting. Terrence Stamp plays a rather too convincing self-help guru, ever-brilliantly commanding both stage (in the film) and screen in his role, but also portraying a vulnerable side to his character. New Zealand actor/comedian Rhys Darby of Flight of the Conchords fame who makes his feature-film debut is delightful as Carl’s nerdy boss Norm, desperate to belong and be part of life. Carrey describes Darby as having ‘Peter Sellers lunacy behind his eyes’, and that is evident in his slightly unhinged and spontaneous actions.
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Fun, frenetic and totally infectious, let the ‘Power of Yes’ invade your subconscious after watching this - just stay to the very end credits to witness Carrey and Deschanel doing one last high-speed, daring deed…
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By Lisa Keddie
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Synopsis
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Based on a memoir by British author Danny Wallace, the story centres on a man who decides to change his life by saying yes to absolutely everything that comes his way. Saying “yes” leads him on a series of unexpected comedic adventures that turn his whole life upside-down.
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Jim Carrey stars as Carl Allen, a man who signs up for a self-help program based on one simple principle: say yes to everything… and anything. At first, unleashing the power of “yes” transforms Carl’s life in amazing and unexpected ways, but he soon discovers that opening up his life to endless possibilities can have its drawbacks.
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Film Facts
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Official UK site: http://www.yesmanmovie.co.uk/
UK Release Date: 26th December 2008
Director: Peyton Reed
Writers: Nicholas Stoller, Jarrad Paul
Cast: Jim Carrey (‘Carl Allen’), Zooey Deschanel (’Renee Allison’), Bradley Cooper (‘Peter’), John Michael Higgins (‘Nick’), Rhys Darby (‘Norman’), Terrence Stamp (‘Terrence Bundley’)
UK Distributor: Warner Bros UK
Certificate: 12A
Run-time: 104 mins
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Video on Real.com
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Trailer:
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REAL EXCLUSIVE: Jim Carrey:
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REAL EXCLUSIVE: Zooey Deschanel:
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REAL EXCLUSIVE: Peyton Reed:
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Behind the scenes: Carrey does a bungee jump:
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Premiere Report 1:
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Premiere Report 2:
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Bradley Cooper and Danny Masterson Interview:
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