Mr. Popper's Penguins

Rating: 3.8 out of 5 stars

Movie: Mr. Popper’s Penguins (2011)

Studio : 20th Century Fox

Info : Click Here

Runtime : 95 min

Website : popperspenguins.com

Rating : PG

Trailer :

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Review:

Mr. Popper (Jim Carrey) just got his inheritance from his globe hopping father, but it isn’t a car or a mansion, but six wayward cold weather penguins. As a yuppie real estate agent bound for glory at his company if he can close this last deal, the timing couldn’t be worse. But when he discovers that the birds help him make headway with his own estranged children and his ex-wife (Carla Gugino), he begins to see the gift in a new way. But his lack of caring soon turns to obsession and his life becomes chaotic in his need to make his new friends comfortable.

Jim Carrey really makes this movie. His brand of comedy that was shown in movies like Ace Venture: Pet Detective shine here with slapstick humor guaranteed to get a chuckle out of the most serious viewer, but that is also what makes this movie frustrating. It seems to depend on that, and in the parts that don’t have those type of moments, it tends to slow down a bit too much. We know that Carrey is capable of heavy emotion such as when he portrayed Andy Kaufman, but that doesn’t seem to come out here. And so what you have is a movie like most of his films, which are hilarious in parts, but doesn’t have anything to back it up in the off moments.

The penguins are CGI, but very good portrayals of the six very different birds. They all have very clear personalities that make them fun to watch without being beaten over the head that they aren’t real. They don’t talk, but they display their cute and sometimes disgusting antics with very easy to understand mime that gives them a realism while allowing for the story’s more fantastical parts. And in case you get confused as to who is who, their names are very indicative of how they think and act. There is Lovey, Stinky, Bitey, Loudy, Nimrod and Captain who seems to be in charge of the flock.

The children in the show play their parts with genuine care and they aren’t annoying or overacted like in some family stories. But if you are looking for highlights, you can’t beat seeing the return of Angela Lansbury who returns to the silver screen as the proper owner of a fancy restaurant. She is always a delight. I always think of her as the UK version of Betty White, but perhaps a bit more English proper.

The story does not translate well from the 1930’s to the present day, perhaps because we’ve seen it all before. The book’s charm is lost in the rush of the comedy aspects and the lack of true sentiment throughout, but it still manages to be enjoyable. And so we give it a 3.8/5 stars. It’s not a perfect comedy by any means, or a wonderfully artistic period family piece like the route they could have taken like Nanny McPhee, but it does entertain and Carrey’s comedy is top notch.

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Yes Man - Jim Carrey

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Movie: Yes Man (2008)

Studio : Warner Bros.

Info : Click Here

Runtime : 104min

Website : yesisthenewno.warnerbros.com

Trailer :

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Review:

To start off, THIS IS A GREAT MOVIE! In my eyes, Jim Carrey is back! Or was never gone, either way this is an excellent movie! Jim Carrey puts himself in the movie as he did with Liar Liar and Bruce Almighty. If your a die-hard Carrey fan, then you’ve probably already seen the movie. If you haven’t, you will and you wont regret it.

There is not much I can really say about this movie because Jim has been my idol my whole life, I love his humor, and I’m almost positive my best friend has the same potential as him. Some people are just funny the way they are! The studio does a great job of giving Jim the proper environments he needed to work his character to the core. But don’t be fooled… Some skeptical people are disgusted by this movie.

There are people I’ve spoken to suggesting that Yes Man is to similar to Jim’s past movie Liar Liar. Sure it’s the same concept, but it is a different situation and a different point of view. All together, the price of a movie ticket is well worth seeing this great actor work his magic with the filming industry.

The thing I am looking forward to most with this movie is the behind the scenes, deleted scenes, and all the blooper extras because everyone knows what Jim does on-camera is only a snippet of his comedy.

BUY Yes Man on DVD

- Trent M.

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