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Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

It may be hard to imagine, now that he’s doing movies for $20,000,000, but there was a time when Jim Carrey could be hired for under half a million. His payday was $350,000, and the movie was "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective."

What made this movie such a smash hit? For one it had an original bordering on ridiculous plot. Jim Carrey is Ace Ventura, a man hired to find high-profile missing pets for their often wealthy owners. This time it’s the Miami Dolphin’s mascot (a dolphin), which later becomes tied to quarterback Dan Marino’s abduction case. And the script was just as original and edgy as the plot itself.

But the film’s star, Jim Carrey, was the main ingredient in this film’s success. "Ace Ventura" is what truly launched Carrey into superstardom. And, like most struggling actors who’ve landed their first major film role, he put everything he had into it to the delight of audiences everywhere. His animated, physical humor (refined while a cast member on “In Living Color”) with the clever, at times risqué humor of the script, made a film packed with memorable lines. Any other actor could’ve failed terribly at portraying such a unique character within such an unorthodox film, but Carrey made even the most ludicrous concepts believable (he truly embodied “Ace”) and riotously funny. The rest of the cast fulfilled their roles, but he was clearly a standout.

And, as tends to be true with low-budget films done in a rush with truly hungry actors (i.e The Breakfast Club, Coming to America), this movie surprised everyone in its success, and even inspired a sequel.

If you add "Ace Ventura" to your collection I guarantee you’ll still be laughing after the fiftieth viewing.

Written by: Katherine E. Webb

Reviewers Rating: 9
Reader's Rating: 9.00
Reader's Votes: 3

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