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Ben
I started watching this knowing it would be stupid, and not expecting to laugh that much. Considering the amount of times I watched this in my youth,

I know most of the jokes by heart now and can quote them perfectly. Once it actually began and Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey in a star making role) is disguised as a courier carrying a box through the streets of Miami like an idiot, I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at him.

There are several scenes in this movie that I can’t help but laugh out loud at. From the talking ass to watching Ace beat up an eagles mascot during the credits, there are enough laugh out loud moments here to keep you entertained for 90 minutes. I’m also surprised the laughs were still there despite the fact I’d first watched this movie over 20 years earlier.

Nobody is going to confuse this with an Oscar winner, but the movie is low brow comedy at its best. The premise is so dumb and Jim Carrey is so stupid, but it’s hard not to get behind Ace as he attempts to hunt down the missing Miami Dolphins mascot. You’re with Carrey all the way on his journey, and there is a genuinely shocking twist ending that I certainly didn’t see coming.

This movie put Jim Carrey on the map, going on to make some of the most memorable comedies of the 90s such as The Mask and Dumb and Dumber. Before this he was on a sketch comedy show called In Living Color and a successful stand up comedian. He used this role as a springboard to stardom and eventually, a Golden Globe win for The Truman Show and the underrated Man on the Moon. Courtney Cox is also in this as a love interest for Ace. In the next year she would be cast in the most overrated sitcom of all time and in this, she is passable as Ace’s flame.

Carrey’s facial expressions alone are worth the price of admission, he is so rubber faced you sometimes wonder how he’s able to do them without injuring himself. I like this movie a lot. It was one of my favourite comedies of the 90s and led Jim Carrey on to bigger and better things. For that reason alone, Ace Ventura will always have a special place in my DVD collection.

Rating: B

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Sally
As fun as it can be to write a bad review, I find if infinitely more satisfying to write about movies I genuinely enjoy. Unfortunately, this is another bad review.

I fully realize that Jim Carrey is a popular actor. Some might even call him beloved amongst my generation. I’ve just never really seen the appeal, with the exception of his more serious films (Man on the Moon, The Truman Show) and the odd comedy (Liar, Liar). His kind of over-the-top slap stick just isn’t my taste. It especially doesn’t interest me when it’s un-clever and transphobic. Ben and I will just have to agree to disagree on Ace.

So let’s just leave it at that. I’m not holding out hopes for the sequel (which I’ve never seen), but thankfully The Addams Family is right around the corner.

Rating: F

(Also, I’d like to add that Friends is not the “most overrated sitcom of all time.” Two and a Half Men is.)