Comic-fantasy preys on the undiscriminating viewer...

Rating: 3/10 (28 February 2007)

Fans of Jim Carrey, who enjoy him on-screen no matter what he does, will no doubt like "Bruce Almighty" for it is designed to be a Jim Carrey vehicle, a showcase for the actor and nothing more. He plays Bruce, an unlucky news-reporter for a Buffalo TV station who blames all his troubles on God; after a meeting with the Almighty himself, Bruce gets a chance to see how tough God's job is by being blessed with extraordinary powers. Naturally, this being a Jim Carrey vehicle, he gets silly and parts the Red Sea--actually, his tomato soup--in his soup-bowl, causes a co-worker to lose control on live television, and turns himself into a romantic stud with his girlfriend. This all works for awhile, but when prayers start piling up and Bruce makes the lazy decision to grant everyone his wish, the movie runs out of comic steam and becomes a sticky mess. Out of three-million-plus prayers answered, the troubles which quickly result seem to happen only in Bruce's town (are residents of Buffalo the only God-seeking people on Earth?). The milieu isn't Buffalo anyway, it's a distinct movie back-lot, and the artificial mechanics of this plot matched with the phony look can make one defensive and angry--but only if he or she isn't a Jim Carrey die-hard. It's a movie assembled by agents and managers and stars, and fans will no doubt enjoy it. *1/2 from ****