Yes Man

Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) is a lonely guy. Carl is a loan officer who is real low on life and down in the dumps because of a break up. One day Carl heeds the advice of an old friend and goes to a self-help seminar. The motto "Yes is the new no!" If the movie's title is any indicator, you know what happens for the rest of the film. He says yes to anything and everything, even an extremely generous granny.

Not very often a comedy comes out with a message worth listening to. "Yes Man" provides just that and exposes the audience to the powers of positive thinking. The movie itself is a montage of Carl saying yes to everything; Carl says yes to learning to speak Korean, Carl says yes to costume party invites from his boss, Carl says yes to flying lessons, and yes to a bar fight, which was one of the funniest scenes of Carl's acceptance journey. Eventually, Carl's yes-ery leads to a new love interest named Allison (Zooey Deschanel) and a promotion at work. And despite all the positive outcomes, Carl learns that saying yes doesn't always necessarily take you in the right direction.

"Yes Man" is a lot of fun to watch. Carrey is on top of his game and is still as funny as always. To answer any questions: Yes the movie is funny. Yes it's worth going to see. And yes you'll enjoy it.

I went to "Yes Man" with my 15 year old daughter just to pass the time, not expecting much based upon Jim Carrey's latest failures. My daughter really enjoyed the movie and I was glad that I went. The movie is predictable, but still very entertaining. If you are a JC fan, then don't pass this one up. I would highly recommend buying the soundtrack for the movie as well, it is very well done except for the glaring omission of the Journey song from the movie climax. See the movie, buy the soundtrack, you will be pleased.

So you've read the other reviews - know about the plot - yes? No pun intended! To give you my take - I felt this movie was brilliant and totally unexpected - no overacting on Jim Carrey's part - no crazy antics (well other than the Ducati scene!) - just a good hearted movie with great music. Zooey Deschanel - how can you not fall in love with this girl? Get the soundtrack with her singing - Yes Man - the title track to the movie - very cool. Zooey is going to be a major Hollywood star and what's cool about that is she is so grounded - can't wait to see her next film!

Jim Carrey is an iconic comedian. Like it or lump it, he has forever left his mark on Hollywood with films like "Ace Ventura," "Dumb and Dumber" and "Man on the Moon," but since the turn of the century Jim has been wasting away with duds like "Me, Myself, and Irene" and "Fun with Dick and Jane." Granted, he's put in some great dramatic performances during this time, notably "Eternal Sunshine", but his attempts at diving back into the genre that made him a movie star have been unadulterated failures.

Where, then, does "Yes Man" stack up? Is it a worthy ode to the Jim Carrey that we all fell in love with in the mid-90s, or yet another film in which Jim Carrey appears to be doing an imitation of himself? I'm happy to say that while it falls somewhere in the middle, it's certainly Jim's best comedy since "Liar Liar," and is actually fairly close to that movie in both concept and enjoyment.

Carrey plays Carl, a recently-divorced loan officer who has become all too comfortable with denying the requests of anyone, both at work and in his personal life. He has resigned himself to spending his time away from others, forgoing any and all opportunities that exist outside his palatial bachelor pad. He's watched his ex-wife find love again, and while he clearly misses the feeling, he isn't in the right headspace for finding it himself.

After a somewhat clunky opening act, Carl finds himself at a "Yes Man" seminar, during which he is told to "allow 'Yes' into his life." After this bizarre presentation by Terrence Stamp, Jim reluctantly finds himself saying "yes" to whatever proposals come his way. He gives all of his pocket money to a homeless man, starts handing out loans at work with reckless abandon, and even takes up an elderly woman on an...offer.

Predictably, Carl's life is rejuvenated, and he finds himself satisfied with himself for the first time in a while. Although the plot moves along pretty much how you'd expect, Carrey is in fine form here. The laughs come often and are sometimes of the gut-wrenching variety. Zooey Deschanel is delightfully droll in her role as Alison, the quirky foil to the often insipid Carl.

Before watching the film, the concept of saying "yes" to anything seemed to me like an excuse to throw Carrey into the most ridiculous predicaments imaginable, just to watch how he'd fair in such situations. But as the movie progressed I found myself thinking seriously about the concept itself, and how much value one could actually extract out of such a philosophy. The concept serves as a gimmick, sure, but it also provides a worthwhile commentary on apathy and how destructive it can be. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a film that will change your life, but the concept is smarter than one might assume.

As far as supporting roles go, the best performance of the entire film--one that I'd even recommend a viewing based solely on--is that of Rhys Darby, who plays Carl's boss Norman. His character is much like his portrayal of Murray from "Flight of the Concords," meaning that humor is derived solely from his New Zealand accent poured over amusing innocence. He had me in stitches every time he was on the screen.

Other than Darby, there aren't any other notable performances to speak of. Bradley Cooper and Danny Masterson play Carl's best friends, but their roles are very minimal, almost to the point of being irrelevant. They largely serve as the locus of Carl's apathy, but little more. It's too bad, as I like both of these actors, and I think the film could have benefitted from us seeing more of them (and Masterson's killer 'stache).

Ultimately, the film was set up to succeed or fail on the backs of Carrey and Deschanel. Thankfully, they're great, both apart and, especially, together. They had a chemistry that I wasn't quite expecting. If you're a fan of either, then I'm sure that you'll enjoy "Yes Man."

VERDICT: Rent It

I just saw this movie at the theater yesterday not having high expectations for it, but I enjoyed the movie and thought it was a BLAST! It is the funniest movie I seen since Four Christmases and White Chicks in 2004 (there have been a few others but I currently can't recall at the top of my head).

The funniest scene in the movie without spoiling the plot is where Jim Carrey's character runs from the hospital in his gown to see Zooey Daschael's character and almost gets himself killed riding his friend's out of this world heavy motorcycle (frankly it is a miracle he didn't get hit by another car or truck)! Another funny part of the movie was the part where Carrey's character clicks "yes" to the enlargement spam email on his work computer and later meets and Iranian woman. There are several other funny scenes throughout the movie with those two being my favorite.

This movie is definitely worth seeing at the theater (it is playing for $1.50 in the Blue-Ridge Cinemas in Raleigh) and with friends on DVD. You will be laughing every few minutes and chanting "Yes, Yes, Yes" for Carrey's character while you watch!

I went to this film dreading the worst, and came out yes, saying "yes"
quite a bit more often. Bearing in mind the "meaning" of it, not saying
a monosyllable, and taking it all with a pinch of salt (like the
self-help guru Terrence Bundley teaches our man in the hospital), this
movie is fun, well made, and doesn't pretend deep meaningful questions.
Popcorn movie? Yes, but good one! Only once did I feel I was into
another formulaic trap. In my case, it was when Carl was riding the
super motorcycle. It felt like The Mirror Has Two Faces (Streisand's),
which was copied in (among others), "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days",
etc.

Moving to the stuff of life: I love Zooey Deschanel's Allison! Of
course, I don't know if I'd stand anything like her in real life, but
isn't she lovely as a woman living by her own rules, not wanting to be
stereotyped "I've got fears, too!" near the end, and yes, charmingly
out of tune with reality :)? I feel the part suits her perfectly.
Unlike another try of Carrey to play something sort of serious: Eternal
Sunshine of the Spotless Mind's Kate Winslet, who's just crass, and
totally... uninviting :).

Bradley Cooper and his other sex addicted friend are fine, the scenes
with the old lady are a bit too much to, well, swallow, and

Rhys Darby is great. I didn't know the actor, but playing a perfect
goof takes guts! I felt pity for old Norman, which is good in such an
"optimistic" film. Molly Sims is cool as a stupid gorgeous
materialistic woman. John Cothran Jr.'s voice is good for a boss. I am
having nightmares with it :). The joke on cops being paranoid about
yes, "suspiciously chosen activities" "Who goes on holidays to Lincoln,
Nebraska" :)? is fun, if a bit stereotyped Hollywood "liberalism" as
Americans like to misname it.

I agree with IDMB's reviewer bopdog from Cardiff, Wales about a) the
film being uplifting b) Carrey becoming "a bit more human, and a bit
more approachable". Morale? Go and enjoy uncritically (if you can)!

I had a chance to see an advance screening of Yes Man last night and I have to say it's one of his best comedies since Me, Myself & Irene. I've always been a fan of Jim Carey, whether he's doing juvenile comedy like Ace Venture or adult orientated drama like the highly underrated Man On The Moon; & Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. Making his first live action film since Fun With Dick & Jane, Carey once again shows his talent as a comic. Early trailers have the film coming off as a Liar Liar rehash, but looking deeper the film is more about than belly laughs and one-liners. It's refreshing to see Carey bring freshness to a role he could easily play in his sleep; one particular scene with Scotch tape had the preview audience in tears. Zooey Deshuncaal more than makes up for the debacle that was The Happening and displays the same likeable charm she displayed in Elf, and hopefully she continues to play romantic leads in the future. All in all this is a fine film and if you're looking for a break from the profanity filed gross out comedies of recent memory, then say yes to Yes Man.

This is the funniest movie of the year. The combination of Jim and Zooey is fantastic. The scene with Danny Masterson and elderly neighbor is hilarious. I can't wait for DVD to come out. It's that good.If you looking for funny and entertaining. This is it.

I was intrigued by the plot of 'Yes Man', mostly because on the surface it looked an aweful lot like, 'Liar, Liar'--also a good Jim Carrey flick...but 'Yes Man' turned out to be different, at least enough to make it stand out from the crowd and loaded with enough laughs that I can genuinely recommend it to my friends with ONE Disclaimer: The scene with his elderly neighbor who requests the opportunity to help him sexually--it could have (and should have) been done by simply suggesting the deed rather than taking us to the bedroom and depicting it FOR us.

Other than that, 'Yes Man' provides enough giggles and outright belly-laughs to make it entirely worthwhile to see...especially if you are in the mood to just forget the world and laugh a little. I enjoy a serious flick as much as the next guy, and while I prefer a good comedy to almost anything else, they seem to be in short supply these days--well, at least good ones are.

Don't look for Jim to get any nominations for acting awards here, but if you moderately like to see him overact like an imbecile, 'Yes Man' is just what you'll need to feel like the $[...] ticket and $[...] bucket of popcorn was actually worth what you paid...and as always, opinions DO vary.

I'm really surprised here.
I really liked this movie.
A lot of Carrey's movies, well.....stink.
This one didn't.

I'll make it short.
What did I like?
Lots of humor without relying on insulting the audience.
The acting, directing all get a passing grade.
The film is similar to "Liar Liar".
"Liar" probably being the better of the two.
An all around great story.
Carrey has to say yes to everything.
It leads to some genuinely funny moments.

What didn't I like?
Nothing really.
The story like I said is funny, it's paced well.
Not too long, not too short.
"Yes Man" comes,
Recommended.