Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
(1994)

Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 1 Hour and 26 Minutes

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Reviewer: Dale
Grade: D

Okay, now, I know that for many people this is a classic. I know many people actually consider this to be one of the funniest movies they have ever seen. Now, I know that sense of humor is one of the most subjective parts of the human experience. What is funny to one person might be a shrug and a scratch of the head to another.

Now that I have that out of the way, let me just say this: this is perhaps the most overrated film I have ever seen and, for most intensive purposes, an immense, steaming pile of elephant vomit masquerading (sort of) as a motion picture.

Why, you might ask? Well, mainly because of Jim Carrey. I love him in many other movies. In fact, I like his work in about every movie but this one. My problem with him here? There is absolutely no subtlety to his work here. He comes off, not as an obnoxious person, but as the most obnoxious person that ever lived. Perhaps this is the point of his performance. Perhaps this is why he is supposed to be funny. Personally, however, I got a little tired of him within ten minutes. He acts like Jerry Lewis on crack cocaine and amphetamines with a ketamin chaser. He flails about with no point. He riffs with no apparent goal, purpose or theme in mind. He does impersonations that have no ground or basis in any of the action transpiring on the screen. He takes lines that might have been funny and renders them limp and hopeless with his overbearing and out of place style of delivery.

That being said, there were moments of the film that I actually did enjoy. The movie got funnier for me as it went along. That is why I am not giving it an "F". I especially enjoyed the part where Ace has himself sent to a mental institution for the purposes of the case (whatever the case may be, it seems to involve the kidnapping of a dolphin.....or something). It is here that his asinine behavior finally makes some kind of sense.

But the moments of humor were, for me, like bits of gold panned out of a vast stream. And I didn't feel like putting myself through the effort of finding them.