Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)

Succeeded by: Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995)

	Directed by: Tom Shadyac	COUNTRY USA GENRE Comedy NORWEGIAN TITLE Ace Ventura og jakten på den forsvunne delfin RUNNING TIME 82 minutes
	Produced by: James G. Robinson
	Written by: Jack Bernstein Tom Shadyac Jim Carrey

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	PERFORMER	RATING
Ace Ventura	Jim Carrey
Melissa	Courteney Cox
Einhorn	Sean Young	½
Emilio	Tone Lóc	½
Dan Marino	Dan Marino	½
Riddle	Noble Willingham	½
Podacter	Troy Evans	½
Woodstock	Raynor Scheine
Camp	Udo Kier	½
Aguado	John Capodice	½
Mr. Shickadance	Mark Margolis
Gruff Man	Randall 'Tex' Cobb

Review

Timing, coincidence and raw, unspoiled talent made Ace Ventura a unique, spontaneous and extremely funny film – a document of the creativity and daring filmmaking that was allowed to surface in the early to mid-90s in general, and 1994 in particular. It was the end of a period in which comedy seemed stuck in formulaic and meticulously planned situational films, in which comedians like Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase and Steve Martin had led the way with physical but undaring performances. In Ace Ventura, there were some parameters clicking that made way for a new type of comedy for a new generation of filmgoers: Tom Shadyac's well-paced, confident direction coupled with Jim Carrey's groundbreakingly over-the-top lead performance.

Carrey had previously appeared in a handful of bit and supporting roles, but was most renowned for his stand-up act at the time of Ace Ventura's release. The key to Ace Ventura was undoubtedly Carrey's performance, which was diction- and mimic-oriented rather than based on more traditional aspects such as personality and dialogue. And this is what was so brilliant about Ace Ventura – Shadyac's ability to construct his often classic comedic situations and conventional (if tight) lowbrow detective story around Jim Carrey's absolutely trendsetting appearance. And with appearance, I don't necessarily mean acting – but rather the introduction of a completely new persona and behaviour. A behaviour that paved the way for an epidemic of catchphrases across the world, including "All righty then", "Loser" and "Holy testicle Tuesday". Naturally, Carrey would never present himself with this kind of freshness again. He was completely intrepid, full of youthful, untested energy, and loaded with improvised antics. Many of these are now golden moments in the history of film comedy – ranking alongside the best of Chaplin. Examples include one single by-pass string tone, a one-of-a-kind button hook pattern in super slo-mo, as well as a handful of detective skills. Ace Ventura represents a rare moment in the history of film comedy.