Bruce Almighty
If you could borrow God's powers for a week, what would you do? Where would you start? We probably all have a few ideas of what we would do if there were nothing that we couldn't do. The new comedy Bruce Almighty merely brushes on the possibilities of what an ordinary person could do with divine power.
Jim Carrey stars as Bruce Nolan, a television reporter and a pisser & moaner. He constantly bitches about his perceived shortcomings in life and blames God for not giving Bruce what he wants. However, Bruce's head is so far up his ass he can't appreciate the stability of his job or the uncompromising support from his girlfriend Grace (Jennifer Aniston). I correct myself; Bruce's employment status is as stable as nitroglycerin after he conducts himself unprofessionally on live television.
Soon, someone is paging Bruce constantly, even after he throws his beeper out the window. Bruce gives in and returns the phone call, which leads him to a large, empty, white building inhabited by God (Morgan Freeman). The Almighty, disturbed by some of Bruce's hurtful words directed at Him, loans Bruce His powers and challenges him to do a better job. Initially, Bruce uses his new powers to entertain himself, get back at those who wronged him, and further his own career. Bruce soon learns that his petty use of virtually limitless power isn't always the best solution to a problem, and that it can have serious repercussions.
BA raises some interesting points about God's role in our daily lives. Most, if not all, of Bruce's complaints about life are products of his choices. For example, Bruce blames God for the puddle that made his pants leg wet, but Bruce should watch where he walks. Later in the film, God makes an excellent speech about people not realizing that they have the power to shape their own lives. As a rule, though, religion is out of place in a comedy (exception: Dogma). BA would have worked better as a drama, starring someone other than Ace Ventura, pet detective.
Having said all that, BA is a fair comedy worthy of Jim Carrey's antics. Bruce makes hilarious side comments in his reports. His job-costing outburst is one of the film's funniest scenes. If you have seen the theatrical trailer or the TV ads, then you have seen most of the humorous uses of power.
I'm annoyed at the filmmakers for wasting Aniston in a trite girlfriend role, especially after her riveting performance in The Good Girl. Grace never questions for more than a minute the inexplicable phenomena surrounding her, such as her dog reading a newspaper while sitting on the crapper or her unprovoked orgasms before a rendezvous with Bruce.
It won't be a surprise to me if people increase their rate of bitching in the hopes that the events of this movie will come true for them. In that case, I'll dust off my recipe for shut-the-fuck-up juice.
Send any comments/ feedback to the author.
Bruce takes a swig from a bottle of fine wine to assess its worth. This could be a neo-classic drinking scene.
Guys might want to rise above Bruce's example by showing their ladies due appreciation.
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