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BY EMILY BOUDREAU
Daily Arts Writer
Published January 9, 2011
It’s hard not to picture Jim Carrey as Ace Ventura, pet detective, or to imagine him contorting his face into hilariously grotesque expressions. But in “I Love You Phillip Morris,” Carrey reigns in his antics, delivering a performance that is both funny and endearing.
I Love You Phillip Morris
Michigan Theater
Europa Corporation
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Steven Russell (Carrey) lives a seemingly normal life — he’s got a great wife (Leslie Mann, “Knocked Up”), a steady job as a cop and he plays the piano for his church choir. But appearances can be deceiving.
On the side, Russell meets up with strange men in hotels for crazy, wild sex. After a traumatic car accident, Russell decides to reassess his life. He vows to quit his double life and comes out of the closet to live a flamboyant lifestyle in Florida. But when the pleasures of his new life — loud silk shirts and clubs with male go-go dancers — become too expensive for him, Russell becomes a con artist and eventually ends up in prison. There, he meets the love of his life, fellow prisoner Phillip Morris (Ewan McGregor, “The Ghost Writer”).
Outlandish as the plot may seem, it's based on a true story. And though the film manages to add an eccentric, humorous layer to the truth, its message becomes a little convoluted. It’s a love story (as the title suggests) between two men. But while there is one really cute scene with Carrey and McGregor dancing romantically in their jail cell, the romance takes a backseat to Carrey’s con schemes. It's too bad, because “I Love You Phillip Morris,” as a comedy, has the potential to appeal to a broad audience — a feat for an American movie with gay subject matter — without having to compromise on the topic of sexuality.
Unfortunately, the film does compromise. After the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” and amid debates about gay marriage, it’s hard not to ask what the political agenda of “Phillip Morris” is — especially because it was actually made two years ago in the wake of films like “Brokeback Mountain,” but was forced to sit on the shelf because it couldn’t find a distribution company.
While other films clearly deliver a message, “I Love You Phillip Morris” doesn’t really have one. Does it cause the audience to see gay men in a different light, or does it just reinforce stereotypes? The majority of the movie’s humor relies on Jim Carrey and his little dogs and farcical anal sex scenes.
This is not a film that handles politically charged material in a delicate manner, and it’s hard to say if some of the laughs come from potential discomfort on the audience’s behalf or because directors Glenn Ficarra (“Bad Santa”) and John Requa (“Bad News Bears”) have actually hit on something that is legitimately funny. But maybe it’s best not to read too much into the movie’s politics. It might just be better to accept the movie for what it is and what it does bring to the screen — and that’s a great time.
