No, our favorite rubberfaced funnyman isn't quite up to the stoicism of a Gary Cooper or a Jimmy Stewart. He is more subtle than the Ritz Brothers, but not yet as subtle as the Marx Brothers. Fortunately, he remains absurdly funny.
When he has to, when he has the material, Jim Carrey can reduce almost anyone to hysterics. How is that? Is it because he has some special facility? No. Somehow, he is able to give himself totally up to any piece of comedy, and he does so often here. Unfortunately, he (or the director, or the screenwriters, or a combination of all three) doesn't know when to stop. Thus, we get Jerry Lewis-esque mugging in scenes where it is not completely appropriate.
The Mask made us realize that Jim Carrey could play normal characters. Not, not as The Mask, but as Stanley Ipkiss, a nebbish who happens to be witty and funny, without having the outrageous physical characteristics one expects of Carrey. Fleter Reede, Carrey's character in Liar Liar, is not so down-to-earth or likeable as Ipkiss (he's a [boo, hiss] lawyer, after all). Nor is he as natural a character.
With his exaggerations very strong early on in the film, I had strong fears that it was going to be a long haul, with Carrey doing everything to make unfunny material funny, and failing (like most of the Chevy Chase oeuvre). As soon as the plot kicked in, however (Carrey is unable to tell a lie for 24 hours due to his son's birthday wish), his usual flailings and mugging become apropos, and therefore hilarious. He says what he thinks inside, and he see his horrified reactions to the "truth." He goes to extremes physically to prevent himself from speaking.
Sure the plot may be formulaic (Carrey is a divorce lawyer for zaftig bimbo Jennifer Tilly), but Carrey is hysterical. The supporting cast doesn't matter. The fact that it goes about 10 minutes too long doesn't matter. Any Jim Carrey movie is about Carrey alone, and this is a good 'un. As far as pure laughs go, this one is second only to Dumb and Dumber.
Copyright 1997 by Dale G. Abersold
