Ace Ventura: Pet Detective Movie Review

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

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Written by: Jack Bernstein (story), Jack Bernstein and Tom Shadyac & Jim Carrey (screenplay)
Directed by: Tom Shadyac
Starring: Jim Carrey, Courteney Cox, Sean Young, Tone Loc, Dan Marino, Noble Willingham, Udo Kier
Rated: PG-13
Watch the trailer

Plot
A goofy detective specializing in animals goes in search of the missing mascot of the Miami Dolphins.

Verdict
It's never anything less than ridiculous, even obnoxious. The movie is a vehicle for Carrey to goof off, and he does that from start to finish. Make no doubt, Carrey is the movie. I don't think any other actor could come close to the performance. It is a lot of fun despite the silliness, and it makes you want to mimic his mannerism and quote him. This is the movie that launched his career and with good reason.
Watch It.

Review
The premise is ridiculous. Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) is a detective with a specific focus, animals. While his attire looks like a child playing dress up, and he's just as immature to match, he's a good detective. It's clear Carrey was told to go wild. He chews the scenery unlike anything I've ever seen, but that's what makes this fun. He is over the top in every scene. It's juvenile, and this excels at it.

Jim Carrey plays Ace Ventura

Ace is called in when the Miami Dolphin's mascot goes missing. While everyone is skeptical, he quickly proves himself an astute detective despite his appearance. He finds a clue the cops missed that leads him to suspect a former member of the Miami Dolphins. That leads to a montage of Ace tracking down every member of the team. Initially he doesn't turn up any leads until he inadvertently discovers a disgraced field goal kicker.

Dan Marino, Jim Carrey plays Himself, Ace Ventura

Ace is a great detective that just prefers to help animals. This is a vehicle for Carrey to mug throughout. I can only imagine how many takes Carrey provided. He has the bravado of a cartoon character.

The big reveal feels like a product of the 90s where people were less accepting of  others' choice and plays it up for comedy. Of course this has a very juvenile reaction to that, marginalizing representation.

This has a tenuous grip on reality, but no one goes into this film expecting a hard boiled detective movie. Everything about this is silly, following Carrey's lead. He manages to solve the case, save the day, and get the girl.