If you like Liar Liar and Bruce Almighty, you'll like this.

Rating: 6/10 (2 September 2013)

Yes Man is a fun experience. Yes it is clichéd, and yes it doesn't stray from the tried and true comedy film formula, but it is a very enjoyable film. The film's story is almost identical to Liar Liar but sees Carrey agreeing instead of being honest, and in many ways it plays like what would happen if you swapped the running order of the first and second acts of Bruce Almighty.
But with Jim Carrey both at his craziest and also most sincere it is difficult to not have fun watching this movie. And when combined with the natural quirky charm of Zooey Deschanel the random adventures are infectious in their own way. The moral compass of the story is provided by Bradley Cooper who plays the best friend Peter, it is far from a show-stealing role but Cooper does his best with the part and gets a few good comedy moments too. Terence Stamp's cameo role as the leader of the Yes cult is enjoyable but slightly awkward at times. The real revelation is Rhys Darby, who plays Carl's boss Norman, and is hilarious in almost everything he does.
The premise of a man saying yes to everything is an interesting one, and it tells a good moral story about why people should always keep an open mind, but the most intriguing part of the premise is the fact that this is a real life story written by comedian Danny Wallace (who makes a cameo appearance in the bar towards the end) after he was did the 'Yes Man' for six months in real life.
Even in a film that requires a fair amount of suspension of disbelief there is one thing that really stands out as strange, and that is Peter telling the police about the Yes agreement in front of Allison. It is far from how a lawyer would do it, and feels like a forced way to present the films dilemma for Carl to overcome and win his love back.