(Photo by Warner Bros. / courtesy Everett Collection)
All Jim Carrey Movies Ranked by Tomatometer
Earth Girls Are Easy sounds like one of those debased projects that occur either at the beginning of a career, out of naivete, or at the end of one, out of desperation. But we doubt Jim Carrey looks back on the 1988 comedy with embarassment, and probably not his co-stars Jeff Goldblum, Damon Wayans, and Geena Davis either. It’s silly, it’s Fresh, and it helped Carrey land In Living Color. And that show helped make the man who would talk out of his ass on the big screen, to the delight of millions. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective made over $100 million, and that was the lowest-grossing of Carrey’s comedies that year, behind Dumb & Dumber and The Mask.
After that breakout in 1994, Carrey was locked and loaded to be the manic centerpiece of 1995’s summer blockbuster event: Playing the Riddler in Batman Forever. The comic book caper was the highest-grossing movie of the year… the same couldn’t be said about 1996’s The Cable Guy, Carrey’s first box office bomb. Fret not: He sprung back in 1997 with Liar Liar, and The Truman Show in 1998.
Part of Carrey’s early enduring quality was a subtle sensitivity hiding beneath the flailing limbs and facial contortions, and the sudden pathos that could erupt from his oddball characters. Carrey began displaying this knack for drama more nakedly in serious projects like Man on the Moon, where he transformed into his comedy idol Andy Kaufman, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the most memorably melancholic romance of recent decades. Of course, Carrey continued to crowd-please with slapstick like Fun With Dick and Jane, Bruce Almighty, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and Yes Man.
After a quiet decade pursuing personal hobbies and middling movie work, Carrey spin-dashed into the 2020s with Sonic the Hedgehog, playing iconic villain Dr. Robotnik (see where it landed on the video game movies list). Today, though, we celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Cable Guy, which rebounded from its lowly box office performance to become a cult classic. See where it ranks in his filmography as we rank Jim Carrey movies by Tomatometer!
#28
Adjusted Score: 0.703%
Critics Consensus: Dark Crimes is a rote, unpleasant thriller that fails to parlay its compelling true story and a committed Jim Carrey performance into even modest chills.
Synopsis: Jim Carrey commands the screen in this spellbinding thriller from Executive Producers of The Revenant and Black Mass. When police...
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#27
Adjusted Score: 8.737%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Best remembered for containing the film debut of phenomenally popular comedian of the early '90s, Jim Carrey, Once Bitten is...
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#26
Adjusted Score: 26.118%
Critics Consensus: Nature Calls in this Ace Ventura sequel, and it's answered by the law of diminishing returns.
Synopsis: Looking for an evening of high-brow, intellectually stimulating, cinematic entertainment done with sophistication and panache? Look elsewhere! This riotous sequel...
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#25
Adjusted Score: 33.212%
Critics Consensus: This muddled comedy has a few laughs, but never sustains a consistent tone.
Synopsis: A not-so-ordinary family finds a new way of paying the bills in this comedy. Dick Harper (Jim Carrey) and his...
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#24
Adjusted Score: 35.771%
Critics Consensus: Dumb and Dumber To does have its moments, but not enough of them -- and the Farrelly brothers' brand of humor is nowhere near as refreshingly transgressive as it once seemed.
Synopsis: Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels reprise their signature roles as Lloyd and Harry in the sequel to the smash hit...
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#23
Adjusted Score: 40.109%
Critics Consensus: Kick-Ass 2 falls short in its attempt to emulate the original's unique blend of ultra-violence and ironic humor.
Synopsis: His heroic antics having inspired a citywide wave of masked vigilantes, Kick-Ass (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) joins their ranks to help clean...
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#22
Adjusted Score: 45.461%
Critics Consensus: The Incredible Burt Wonderstone serves up some goofy laughs, but given its outrageous conceit, it's surprisingly safe and predictable.
Synopsis: Superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking...
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#21
Adjusted Score: 42.144%
Critics Consensus: Loud, excessively busy, and often boring, Batman Forever nonetheless has the charisma of Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones to offer mild relief.
Synopsis: Director Joel Schumacher inherited the Batman franchise from Tim Burton and began steering it in the campier direction of the...
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#20
Adjusted Score: 46.475%
Critics Consensus: Ponderous and overlong, The Majestic drowns in forced sentimentality and resembles a mish-mash of other, better films.
Synopsis: Hollywood screenwriter Peter Appleton, a staff writer at HHS Studios in 1951, is an ambitious up-and-comer. His first produced screenplay,...
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#19
Adjusted Score: 51.664%
Critics Consensus: Jim Carrey's comic convulsions are the only bright spots in this otherwise dim and predictable comedy.
Synopsis: Carl Allen's life is going nowhere--the operative word being "no"--until he signs up for a self-help program based on one...
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#18
Adjusted Score: 50.157%
Critics Consensus: While Jim Carrey's comedic skills earn some laughs, Me, Myself and Irene sports a tired, unsatisfying plot.
Synopsis: Six years after Dumb and Dumber, Jim Carrey reunited with Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly for this anarchic comedy with...
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#17
Adjusted Score: 51.195%
Critics Consensus: Blandly inoffensive and thoroughly predictable, Mr. Popper's Penguins could have been worse -- but it should have been better.
Synopsis: In this family comedy, Jim Carrey is Mr. Popper, a driven businessman who is clueless when it comes to the...
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#16
Adjusted Score: 53.501%
Critics Consensus: Carrey is hilarious in the slapstick scenes, but Bruce Almighty gets bogged down in treacle.
Synopsis: After a bad day at work, a man suddenly gets a new job -- as the world's new Heavenly Father...
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#15
Adjusted Score: 53.492%
Critics Consensus: Jim Carrey's twitchy antics and gross-out humor are on full, bombastic display in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, which is great news for fans of his particular brand of comedy but likely unsatisfying for anyone else.
Synopsis: When your dog, bird, or water-dwelling mammal disappears, who do you call? Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) is a low-rent private...
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#14
Adjusted Score: 53.903%
Critics Consensus: Jim Carrey shines as the Grinch. Unfortunately, it's not enough to save this movie. You'd be better off watching the TV cartoon.
Synopsis: The curmudgeonly recluse Grinch, who hates Christmas, becomes annoyed with the out-of-control Christmas festivities in Whoville, the town lying below...
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#13
Adjusted Score: 59.445%
Critics Consensus: Robert Zemeckis' 3-D animated take on the Dickens classic tries hard, but its dazzling special effects distract from an array of fine performances from Jim Carrey and Gary Oldman.
Synopsis: Ebenezer Scrooge begins the Christmas holiday with his usual miserly contempt, barking at his faithful clerk and his cheery nephew....
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#12
Adjusted Score: 58.236%
Critics Consensus: The Cable Guy's dark flashes of thought-provoking, subversive wit are often -- but not always -- enough to counter its frustratingly uneven storytelling approach.
Synopsis: Originally planned as a silly vehicle for Chris Farley, in the hands of director Ben Stiller and star Jim Carrey,...
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#11
Adjusted Score: 68.143%
Critics Consensus: Jim Carrey is eerily dead-on in his portrayal of Andy Kaufman, which helps to elevate Man on the Moon above the script's formulaic biopic cliches.
Synopsis: Man on the Moon, starring Jim Carrey, as the late Andy Kaufman who was considered the most innovative, eccentric and...
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#10
Adjusted Score: 73.274%
Critics Consensus: Fittingly fleet and frequently fun, Sonic the Hedgehog is a video game-inspired adventure the whole family can enjoy -- and a fine excuse for Jim Carrey to tap into the manic energy that launched his career.
Synopsis: SONIC THE HEDGEHOG is a live-action adventure comedy based on the global blockbuster video game franchise from Sega that centers...
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#9
Adjusted Score: 71.251%
Critics Consensus: Earth Girls Are Easy is messy, silly, and not particularly bright -- qualities it comes by honestly and deliberately.
Synopsis: In this madcap comedy, Geena Davis plays Valerie, a manicurist living in the valley with her cold fiancé, Dr. Ted...
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#8
Adjusted Score: 71.045%
Critics Consensus: A relentlessly stupid comedy elevated by its main actors: Jim Carrey goes bonkers and Jeff Daniels carries himself admirably in an against-type performance.
Synopsis: Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels play the title roles (though viewers may find themselves debating which is which) in this...
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#7
Adjusted Score: 75.504%
Critics Consensus: This fact-based romantic comedy has its flaws, but they're mostly overcome by its consistently sweet, funny tone and one of the best performances of Jim Carrey's career.
Synopsis: Bad Santa co-screenwriters Glenn Ficara and John Requa re-team for this fact-based black comedy starring Jim Carrey as a Texas...
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#6
Adjusted Score: 76.363%
Critics Consensus: Although it softens the nasty edges of its source material, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a gothic visual treat, and it features a hilariously manic turn from Jim Carrey as the evil Count Olaf.
Synopsis: The best-selling series of subversive children's books from author Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler) come to the screen in this...
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#5
Adjusted Score: 81.969%
Critics Consensus: It misses perhaps as often as it hits, but Jim Carrey's manic bombast, Cameron Diaz' blowsy appeal, and the film's overall cartoony bombast keep The Mask afloat.
Synopsis: Hyperactive mayhem results when a mild-manned banker discovers an ancient mask that transforms him into a zany prankster with superhuman...
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#4
Adjusted Score: 84.853%
Critics Consensus: Horton Hears A Who! is both whimsical and heartwarming, and is the rare Dr. Seuss adaptation that stays true to the spirit of the source material.
Synopsis: Horton the Elephant struggles to protect a microscopic community from his neighbors who refuse to believe it exists....
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#3
Adjusted Score: 85.431%
Critics Consensus: Despite its thin plot, Liar Liar is elevated by Jim Carrey's exuberant brand of physical humor, and the result is a laugh riot that helped to broaden the comedian's appeal.
Synopsis: An attorney who tells the truth for 24 hours straight? This has got to be the movies! Fletcher Reede (Jim...
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#2
Adjusted Score: 99.276%
Critics Consensus: Propelled by Charlie Kaufman's smart, imaginative script and Michel Gondry's equally daring directorial touch, Eternal Sunshine is a twisty yet heartfelt look at relationships and heartache.
Synopsis: The second feature from director Michel Gondry (Human Nature) finds the filmmaker reteaming with screenwriter Charlie Kaufman for this off-the-wall...
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#1
Adjusted Score: 102.463%
Critics Consensus: A funny, tender, and thought-provoking film, The Truman Show is all the more noteworthy for its remarkably prescient vision of runaway celebrity culture and a nation with an insatiable thirst for the private details of ordinary lives.
Synopsis: Jim Carrey gives a remarkable performance as a man learning that his entire life in a storybook coastal village has...
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