ME, MYSELF & IRENE ------------------
LAURA:
The Farrelly Brothers try to push the outer edge of outrageousness they established with "There's Something About Mary" in their newest flick "Me, Myself & Irene." While it has its moments, they should be thankful they had the wisdom to reteam with their "Dumb and Dumber" star, Jim Carrey, because without his talent, this could have been a dismal effort.
Carrey is Charlie, a nice, fastidious Rhode Island state trooper who we're introduced to in a flashback chronicling his sticky sweet romance and subsequent wedding. While his wife (Traylor Howard, TV's "Two Guys and a Girl") professes to be his soul mate, she falls for their Black midget limo driver on her wedding day when they both discover they're Mensa chapter heads after he tries to pin Charlie with a nonexistent racial slur. Charlie never seems to notice when his three sons are all born Black and loves them unreservedly. Charlie also gets no respect from the townsfolk he serves or his newspaper-stealing neighbor. When Charlie's wife finally decides to run away with her long-time lover (the kids are entering college by this time), Charlie snaps and Hank emerges to deal with Charlies long supressed rage.
No sooner is Charlie put on medication to control Hank's manic outbursts (like reciprocating his neighbor's dog's 'lawn presents' personally on his neighbor's lawn), then he's tasked with returning Irene (Rene Zellwegger, "Jerry Maguire"), who's being framed by her ex-boyfriend, to upstate New York to face trumped up charges. Of course, the medication is left behind, Charlie and Hank are both attracted to Irene, and everyone in their path seems to want to kill them.
This last aspect is perhaps, one of the biggest problems with the screenplay of "Me, Myself & Irene" (the Farrellys and Mike Cerone), as Irene's problems with her ex are never clarified, nor is it made clear why so many corrupt cops and mob guys seem to be involved or why Irene's knowledge deserves her death warrant. This run, stop for comedic Charlie/Hank/Irene interlude, run, stop, run plot mechanic creaks along flatly. The only saving grace is that Charlie's three large, extremely smart sons (they argue over physics homework) figure out he's in trouble and begin a rescue mission which is returned to occasionally.
Carrey gives a great, manic yet controlled physical performance. He's ramrod earnestness as Charlie and leering maniac as Hank. His transformation from one to the other, especially initially, is a marvel to behold (and seemed to foreshadow his transformation into the Grinch, coming later this year). He gets all the good lines, romancing Irene with 'your eyes are all squinty and your mouth's puckered up like you've been sucking on a lemon, but it works.' If that doesn't describe Zellwegger - perfect! However, he's also given some pretty unsavory stuff to work with (particularly with regards to an oversized sex toy) that verges on just plain distasteful, rather than distastefully funny (i.e., Mary's hair gel).
Other than Carrey, only the three young actors who play his sons really get a chance to shine, as they get dad to switch the TV from Gomer Pyle to Richard Pryor and continue to grow up in a healthily profane manner. Zellwegger is mostly stuck in reactive mode. Chris Cooper ("American Beauty") is utterly wasted as a corrupt cop and plays the role humorously. Faring slightly better is Robert Forster ("Jackie Brown"), who at least emotes with an air of cluelessness suitable to the material.
"Me, Myself & Irene" is a disappointment from the Farrelly perspective, but Carrey fans at least should appreciate his take on the split personality - the performance is a lot more alive than the Andy Kaufman impersonation he gave in his previous film.
C+
ROBIN:
Peter and Bobby Farrelly have made their own imprint on mainstream comedy these past few years with their debut hit, "Dumb and Dumber," the underrated "Kingpin," and the overrated "There's Something About Mary." Now, six years after "D&D," the pair reunites with Jim Carrey in a story about a nice guy cop, Charlie, who loves his job, but keeps his frustrations inside. He develops an alter ego, the sexually compulsive Hank, and the two vie for the affection of a pretty fugitive in "Me, Myself & Irene."
Charlie is a member of the "best law enforcement organization in the country," the Rhode Island State Police, but he has a problem. He's just too easy going. So much so, in fact, that everyone takes advantage of his amiable nature. His wife left him for a black-midget-genius-limo-driver. Charlie is left to raise their three boys - triplets who are definitely not the fruit of Charlie's loins - and has never gotten over the desertion. He's also such a nice-guy sucker that people treat him without respect to his authority. Scofflaws act as if he's their personal valet. Even kids treat him like dirt - "My daddy says I don't have to listen to you!" one petulant little girl tells him
The hapless cop snaps one day and out pops Hank. Charlie's alter ego exacts the retributions the nice-guy cop can't, but Hank's violent actions earn Charlie a stay under psychiatric care. He is eventually allowed back on duty, but he has to take his medication every six hours.
Enter Irene (Renee Zellweger), a pretty young woman passing through town who gets arrested for an out-of-state warrant and Charlie is selected to drive her back to upstate New York. The warrant is a fake, though, as Irene is really being sought by her former boss, Dickey, who thinks she has the dirt on his shady dealings. He brings in a corrupt cop (Chris Cooper) and EPA investigator (Richard Jenkins) to go after Irene with deadly intent and it's up to Charlie/Hank to save her.
The only real attraction to "Me, Myself & Irene" is the sometimes-brilliant physical comedy of Jim Carrey. There is little in the way of a story, but lots in the way of the visual comedy that centers on Carrey. The comic actor made his mark with the goofy hi-jinx of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," and has shown himself to have an amazing physical versatility. His Charlie/Hank has the flexibility of Inspector Gadget. In one scene, Hank picks up the unconscious Charlie and throws him in the back seat of a car. It is a terrific moment of visual, physical comedy and rivals Steve Martin's great performance in "All of Me."
The rest of the cast is left out in the cold. About the best that can be said for the roles beyond Charlie/Hank is that none of the actors damaged their careers, at least. Renee Zellweger acts well with Carrey, but is always the second banana to the comedian. Robert Forster fades into the background as Charlie's commanding officer. Chris Cooper looks like he's in pain as the corrupt, bad guy cop. This, in particular, is a waste of a terrific character actor. The only saving graces in the supporting roles are the three guys who play Charlie's "sons." The genius trio combines discussion of metaphysics with earthy jive talk that gives a funky edge to Charlie's family life and the only other laughs in the flick.
The story, by the Farrelly brothers and Mark Cerrone, is, in a word, lame. Actually, there are two stories - one, about Charlie/Hank and Irene; the other, about Irene's plight. The latter story has no sense as Irene is ported back to New York into the jaws of imminent death, but we never get a sense of why. Nothing is done to explain why the bad guys - these are the blandest bad guys I've seen in a long time - want to kill Irene. I realize that the film is a vehicle for Carrey, but a sensible story is a necessity of film, too. The Charlie/Hank yarn works about the way you'd expect with all the pratfalls and slapstick you'd want.
"Me, Myself & Irene" is what I expected out of the Farrelly brothers, and less. Their use of the comic talent of Jim Carrey assures them a solid stay at the box office - especially since it is a performance that is worth the price of admission. The rest of the film falls flat and lays, lifeless, as the antics of Carrey prevail. The laughs are there and they all belong to Jim Carrey (and his sons). I give it a C+.
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laura@reelingreviews.com robin@reelingreviews.com
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