Yes Man

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) is a sad bank-loan officer, who is still recovering from his divorce. He answers “NO” to every attempt by his friends to engage him in any social activity and spends most of his time watching DVDs at home.

Carl’s life changes when he meets a steely-eyed guru (Terence Stamp), who preaches the power of saying “Yes”.

Carl commits himself to saying “YES” to everything with hilarious and, mostly positive, consequences.

WHAT’S IT LIKE?

Although “Yes Man” is apparently based on a true story from a book written by a British comedian, Danny Wallace, it conjures up memories of Jim Carrey’s earlier movie “Liar Liar”. The difference is that Liar Liar is funnier and emotionally more satisfying.

Yes Man starts slow and you itch for Carrey to do something that would yield a genuine laugh, as you would expect from him. Luckily, in the second half of the film, Carrey, with his rubbery face and coil spring body, delivers what we are waiting for: silly banter.

Don’t expect, however, the insane wild comedy that we are used to from Carrey; he looks older and more mature and acts accordingly. Nonetheless, he is still fun to watch.

The story is silly and forgettable, but if you like Jim Carrey, then you’re bound to derive some joy from it and leave the cinema with a smile on your face.

Opens nationwide 26 December 2008