Still makes me laugh six years later

Rating: 7/10 (9 October 2009)

I first saw "Bruce Almighty" in late 2003 and recognized the star, Jim Carrey. I was seventeen years old at the time, and thought this was a good movie. There are some comedies I saw around that time and found really funny, but watched again several years later and happened to find them very straight-faced, such as "Johnny English", a film I saw on the silver screen that year. However, that hasn't quite been the case with this particular comedy. I watched this again in early 2007, and it seemed to be just as good as before. Over two years after that, I've seen it again, and this time, I was slightly disappointed to find that I didn't like it as much as I did during my previous two viewings, but still can't join those who say it's not funny.
Bruce Nolan is a news reporter in Buffalo, New York who lives with his girlfriend, Grace Connelly. He does human interest stories, which he is tired of, and hopes for the position of anchorman. Unfortunately for him, that position goes to his rival colleague, Evan Baxter, and after Bruce loses control during a live feed from Niagara Falls, he is fired. After a very bad day, Bruce blames all his problems on God, and is soon confronted by the Almighty! Since the fired reporter has been complaining to God so much, He has decided to give Bruce His powers for a while, to see if he's any better at ruling the world. At first, Bruce takes full advantage of his new powers, and his life appears to be improving. He even uses his powers to get Evan fired so he can take his place, and he doesn't have to worry about his dog urinating on things inside anymore. However, his luck doesn't last, as doing God's job gradually gets harder.
Every time I've watched this film, the part where Bruce uses the powers he has gotten from God to make Evan really screw up his report has made me laugh so incredibly hard! There aren't too many comedies I've seen with gags I find THAT funny! That's definitely the funniest part, but there are other memorable gags, such as Bruce freaking out during his live feed around the beginning (which is what leads to his firing), the way the main character gets his revenge on a group of thugs (though I didn't find that one quite as funny as I used to), and Bruce's meeting with God on Mount Everest. Jim Carrey sometimes goes a little overboard with his goofiness, such as the several times when he says, "It's good. It's goooooood!" Fortunately, for the most part, this isn't an issue. Also, "Bruce Almighty" is not all comedy, as there are serious parts as well, plus some life lessons, as others have obviously pointed out already.
Not only does this 2003 release feature the same star as 1997's "Liar Liar", both films were also directed by Tom Shadyac. As popular as "Liar Liar" is, I just couldn't get into it with Jim Carrey's voices and sounds. The main reason why I think "Bruce Almighty" is much better is because Carrey doesn't do that as much here. If you can't stand Carrey as a comedian (it seems he has a lot of critics, which I can understand), and/or you can't stand to see God portrayed in human form (played here by Morgan Freeman), this is definitely a movie you should stay away from. However, if you're a fan of Carrey (die-hard or moderate, I guess) and you want a combination of goofy, sometimes crude comedy and drama/life lessons, you could get a lot out of this film. There's obviously no guarantee you'll like it, but if you ask me, it's worth a try.