I Love You Phillip Morris

 I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS
 written for the screen and directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa

[directorial debut, but writing filmography: Bad News Bears (2005), Bad Santa, Cats and Dogs]

starring Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor and Leslie Mann

   

ENJOYMENT: ***** (out of 5)

"Loved it"

    I only saw this movie because I was waiting for Corey to be able to see The Fighter and Portland is a little behind on movie releases, so this was the only movie at the theater that sounded good.  I was originally very excited to see this film just from the plot description, the R rating, Jim Carrey, and it being the writers of Bad Santa's first directorial effort.  Then I saw the trailer, saw the reviews, and thought maybe it was different than I thought it would be.  But, alas, this film was incredibly hilarious, magnificently raunchy, very graphic, and extremely well-made.  I'd say it's Bad Santa meets Catch Me If You Can.  Jim Carrey is at his absolute best, not afraid of anything about this role and reminding us of his myriad of acting ranges.  Also, no one understands the humor in this film better than Carrey, bringing us back to the days of Ace Ventura, Dumb and Dumber, and even Me, Myself, and Irene.  Ewan McGregor also attacks this role unabashedly, playing Jim Carrey's lover Phillip Morris (not the Philip Morris of the cigarette empire).  

   

   All in all, I couldn't recommend I Love You Phillip Morris more highly to those of you with a bit of a twisted sense of humor with no aversion to seeing gay characters be promiscuous and wild.  On the other hand, those of you who are a bit uptight, be prepared for some "wild" you haven't seen in films yet.  Jim Carrey plays a loving father and husband to a devout Christian Texan woman, Leslie Mann, who decides to stop living a lie, move to South Beach, and become a conman.  The cons, the chases, the jokes, and the many incarnations of Carrey's devlish and sneaky character are wonderful, on par with his range in Man on the Moon, and the excitement of Catch Me If You Can.  I laughed super hard the whole way through this film--though the guy next to me wasn't laughing, I thought maybe he was cracking up on the inside.  The story is spectacular and impressive and needed to be told, for how men can do these sorts of amazing (yet illegal) things is beyond me.  

    
    The film had a modest budget, $13 million, though you would never know it--Carrey and McGregor must have worked for peanuts.  I think Carrey should have gotten a Golden Globe for this role, though no nominations have been named for this film yet.  UPDATE: The Writer's Guild of America (WGA) nominated I Love You Phillip Morris for Best Adapted Screenplay!
 

PROS:

-Big laughs all the way though

-Incredible entertainment with lots of action and twists and turns.

-Superb acting on part of Carrey especially, with a great performance from McGregor
-Dealt with taboo subject not too often seen in films, and though not always with grace and tact, it was still refreshing to see even a perverse gay love story

-Great production, all in all--the whole story is there in all its glory

CONS:

-The title will turn a lot of people off from seeing this film.  (I thought it was about the tobacco tycoon, Philip Morris, and he was really gay and spent time in jail and dated a conman.)

AWARD PREDICTIONS: Nothing.  Though it should get Carrey a Best Actor Oscar nomination, his first in his life, and a Best Adapted Screenplay nom.