Movie Review: The Mask (1994)

When I was young, I was a big Jim Carrey fan, and yet this is the movie that I could never get into. It just seemed too much, too Jim Carrey. So I’ve now seen it for the first time from start to finish.

Carrey plays Stanley Ipkiss, a mild-mannered and insecure bank clerk, who becomes a wiseass superhero after receiving the mask.

The movie’s intentionally quite cartoonish, and I suppose there is an appeal there. It’s well cast, considering Jim Carrey is kind of a live action cartoon to begin with.

I have mixed feelings on this movie. Most of the jokes don’t land and the movie’s far more annoying than funny whenever it uses its visual effects. When it’s just Jim Carrey mugging, it’s alright. He’s good at that, and his expressions are definitely humorous.

I also like the look of the movie. It’s very colourful and a bit art deco at times. It looks like a comic book.

So it’s a movie that has its moments, but it’s just personally too childish for me. I didn’t grow up with it, and I’m curious if it’d be as well liked by others who didn’t watch it when they were younger.

Rating: 5/10