Reviews of Yes Man

Eh, Maybe.

Posted : 2 weeks, 4 days ago on 20 December 2009 10:15 (A review of Yes Man)

The movie starring Jim Carrey who plays a man name Carl, who is content with his life going nowhere and saying no to everything that he comes in contact with. After missing his best friends Bachelor party, his social life seems to be completely gone, as well as his will to live with the outside world. Right when he feels at an all time low, an old friend teaches him to say “Yes” to everything, completely changing his life. At the beginning of his quest to innovate and change his old life, he felt the idea to be more of a nuisance; but it turned out in the long run to be responsible for many good times and the best change in his life. Flying planes, jumping off buildings, and finding a Iranian mail-order bride; this movie has a lot of funny parts, as only Jim Carrey would be a part of. Winner of the MTV Award for best comedic performance for 2008, this is one of the best I’ve seen of Carrey in quite a few years.

Carl Allen: Hey Carl... you wanna give your money away to some homeless guy? Yes, yes I do. How bout letting him use up the phone battery so that you cant get help when your car runs out of gas? You know what? That sounds like a fuckin' great idea!

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Yes! A good old-fashioned Carrey comedy!

Posted : 5 months, 3 weeks ago on 14 July 2009 11:16 (A review of Yes Man)

"The era of "yes" has begun."

More than anything else, Yes Man is an opportunity for Jim Carrey to reclaim his bygone slapstick glory days following a fleeting, unsuccessful venture into drama (The Number 23) and a restrained period in animation (Horton Hears a Who!). Carrey harkens back to his usual tricks here, making us laugh the good old-fashioned way in this screen adaptation of the novel of the same name by satirical writer Danny Wallace (who makes a brief cameo in the film). The primary narrative of Yes Man - a man who decides to change his life by saying "yes" to everything - is more or less a retread of another successful Jim Carrey vehicle: Liar Liar. Unfortunately, too, every plot-related aspect of Yes Man - the construction of the story, the set-up, the pay-off, the conflict and the resolution - is the very definition of predictability. But it's Carrey's oddball performance, the laughs and the genuinely engaging romantic subplot that makes the stale material feel fresh and renewed. This is not a masterpiece by any stretch, but it is a heart-warming, pleasant diversion worth a few hours of your time.

The story tracks a lonely, miserable corporate drone named Carl Allen (Carrey). Due to his depression following a fairly recent divorce, Carl has given up on life and says "no" to every opportunity to do anything apart from sitting in his apartment watching movies and being unhappy. When an old acquaintance (Higgins) urges Carl to attend a seminar, however, he ends up enrolling in a personal development program based on a very simple principal: say "yes" to every opportunity that comes your way. Carl finds his existence transformed, leading to some startling changes. He develops a relationship with a musician/photographer/aerobics instructor named Allison (Deschanel), and is unexpectedly promoted.

Once Carl swallows his pessimism, Yes Man switches into slapstick overdrive, observing the pickles that Carl gets himself into as a "yes man". The challenges he faces range from hilarious (Norman's Harry Potter party) to downright icky (accepting a sexual favour from his elderly neighbour). But eventually the film descends into familiar territory, culminating in an extremely clichéd final act. The laughs come to a dead halt once the narrative becomes trapped in a mundane break-up subplot and Carrey is forced to claw his way out of the trite distraction.

The messages behind Yes Man are simple: get the most out of life, and be nice to your peers. This Jim Carrey vehicle does borrow heavily from a great number of films (not just the aforementioned Liar Liar but also The Bucket List and more or less every generic romantic comedy in recent memory), but there's nothing wrong with borrowing if it works, and Yes Man works pretty well despite a large offering of formula.

Yes Man supplies some big laughs, a few good chuckles, and a bunch of mildly amusing moments. A lot of music is provided by an alternative Pop/Rock group known as the Eels, while some of the songs are performed by Zooey Deschanel and her band in the film (Munchausen by Proxy). The songs are truly excellent here, offering a terrific oddball feel. At the helm of the picture is Peyton Reed who provides plenty of energy and generates a glorious fast pace. Yet the concept of Yes Man provides a serious narrative problem - if saying "yes" to every situation improves Carl's life, there's no conflict. There's some wasted potential here too, let's face it. Carl could have gotten himself into a great number of additional scenarios (like those from Danny Wallace's novel), but disappointingly few are exploited.

For his performance, Carrey is a bit more restrained than usual, and his character comes across as a genuinely likable guy. His rubber face and manic energy are welcome here, with his enthusiasm helping to sell the weaker jokes. After beginning with a few nods to his "old self" (the man we saw throughout most of his '90s output), Carrey settles down to play a straightforward romantic comedy protagonist. Meanwhile the impossibly gorgeous and lovely Zooey Deschanel is the film's secret weapon. She avoids overacting - she's low-key and lets her expressive eyes convey her character's emotions. Her singing voice is also utterly angelic. The success of a romantic comedy depends on the two leads. Fortunately, even despite an 18-year age gap, Deschanel and Carrey have it - the chemistry necessary for the romantic aspect of the movie to gain traction. Their nice chemistry is assisted by Deschanel's disarmingly off-kilter line readings and abundant charisma. The supporting cast is just as good - Rhys Darby is a particular standout as Carl's boss/buddy, while Terence Stamp is terrific during his brief screen-time, and Bradley Cooper does his best with an underwritten best friend role.

Yes Man is an amiable and entertaining feel-good romantic comedy. It never grows tedious, and it's never coated in too much saccharine. The characters are endearing, the premise is intriguing, the laughs are amusing, and it encourages us to get the most out of life. Sometimes that's enough to warrant a recommendation.

6.5/10

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Sometimes NO is the greatest YES.

Posted : 1 year ago on 28 December 2008 05:23 (A review of Yes Man)

''I do want to take guitar lessons. I do want to learn how to fly. Yes, I would like to learn Korean.''

A guy challenges himself to say "yes" to everything for an entire year.

Jim Carrey: Carl Allen

Let's first begin by saying, Jim Carrey is getting older, unsurprisingly Yes Man shows this little factor off all too well. As does the minute fact being, that Yes Man is another comedy vehicle for Jim Carrey,whom is renowned for doing. Whether it be Mask, Ace Ventura, Liar Liar, Carrey knows how to make us laugh and he knows how to do it well. So why does Yes Man feel to me to be another churned out comedy piece,lacking in originality and diversity? Why does Carrey do a film thats an emulated and tired out formula Comedy Caper?
Let's assume he's going back to what he's good at, he's having abit of fun and that this Yes Man is a bit of fun. Definitely Yes Man results in a brainless humour laden roller coaster of craziness.



So Yes Man has strengths, being when you see past it's flaws and switch of your logical thinking per say, and quite literally go with the flow. It's got some seriously clever characters, Rhys Darby as Norman, Carl's work colleague seems to be hilariously portrayed, throwing some crazy parties that pay homage to the likes of 300 & Harry Potter.
We also have Zooey Deschanel as Allison, who has a quirky romance with Carrie's Carl. Terence Stamp pops up as Terrence Bundley, the YES founder, and Bradley Cooper & John Michael Higgins playing Carl's mates.

So Yes Man is about a man named Carl Allen, who is always saying no and making excuses for events and people in his life. All of a sudden one day, a situation presents itself, in the form of a form of positiveness, wherein a group of cult-like attendees, always say yes to life. This group is led by a very white haired Terrence, whom makes Carl take up the Yes way of life.
From here on in, the story shifts from gimmicky comedy, to the more subtleties of character development and romance between the energetic pair. This shift in gear helps break Yes Man away from its early Bruce Almighty styled antics, with its soulless scenes of illogical chaos, and develop those who inhabit the screen into characters we become embroiled with. Carrey, who adopts a tone here that is similar to his work in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind(his finest serious acting film), manages to establish a distinctive plausible mix of genuine warmth and his usual shtick and slapstick; those who appreciate both sides of the actor will get a lot out of it, though one suspects many will only be distracted by the more zany sides of Carl. On the opposite side of the story, Zooey Deschanel plays a role not that dissimilar from her earlier effort from this year in The Happening, but is certainly given alot more to do here. As a love interest, Deschanel is as alluring as she need be, and counterbalances her softer core with a welcome independent edge.

Of course, Yes Man isn't all yes, of course, there are flaws, and one cannot help but be somewhat critical towards proceedings. Yet despite the pacing issues, and a lack of drama or conflict that feels natural or warranted, there nevertheless remains an enjoyable, heart-warming core to Yes Man's story that is very hard to refute. There will be moments, when you may look at your mobile, perhaps wonder where your pop corn has all gone, at the movie's more OTT antics, which clash with the adult-orientated parts, but by the time the credits roll, there's little doubt that you'll be feeling uplifted, warm and fuzzy from the hysterical.

As far as comedy or romance goes, Yes Man is by no means anything new, in fact both elements are still and unprecedented, for a large part of the feature, but as a character-drama, the feature remains compelling to watch transpire. For that reason, I recommend this to those who want something fun and not necessarily original or high in the thinking department, but at the same time, more contemplated, more reserved in nature. There are strong moments in Yes Man, yet these are moments of mere background explosive temperament, contrasted against sweet melody that is played in the foreground. Also wait for the credits for a nice addition of footage accompanying the credits for some same styled fun, along the lines of the film's feel.

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