Bruce Almighty (2003)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Tom Shadyac

Writers (WGA):

Steve Koren (story) &
Mark O'Keefe (story) ...

Release Date:

23 May 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

How would you handle the most awesome responsibility in the universe?

Plot:

A guy who complains about God too often is given almighty powers to teach him how difficult it is to run the world.

Plot Keywords:

God | Reporter | Responsibility | Deal | Prayer

Awards:

7 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Jim Carrey	...	Bruce Nolan
Morgan Freeman	...	God
Jennifer Aniston	...	Grace Connelly
Philip Baker Hall	...	Jack Baylor
Catherine Bell	...	Susan Ortega
Lisa Ann Walter	...	Debbie
Steve Carell	...	Evan Baxter (as Steven Carell)
Nora Dunn	...	Ally Loman
Eddie Jemison	...	Bobby
Paul Satterfield	...	Dallas Coleman
Mark Kiely	...	Fred Donohue
Sally Kirkland	...	Anita
Tony Bennett	...	Himself
Timothy Di Pri	...	Bruce's Cameraman (as Timothy DiPri)
Brian Tahash	...	Bruce's Soundman

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for language, sexual content and some crude humor.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Malaysia:18PL (re-rating) | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | Brazil:Livre | Canada:PG | Chile:TE | Denmark:7 | Egypt:(Banned) | Finland:K-7 | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Malaysia:(Banned) (original rating) | Netherlands:MG6 | New Zealand:M | Norway:11 | Peru:PT | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/6 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39779)

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Among the many religious and Biblical allusions in the film are the following: - When exiting God's "office", Bruce walks right over the puddle that drenched his leg on the way in. - At the diner, while parting his tomato soup a la the Red Sea, the background music is the theme from The Ten Commandments (1956). - His prayer e-mail service is called "Yahweh.com", a reference to God's Biblical name. - At the party celebrating the anchor position, Bruce turns water into wine and poses next to a statue of a golden calf. - When Bruce is about to get his job back, he tells Jack that he (Bruce) needed some time to reassess his goals and find his true self. Jack astonished asks him, "You did that in a day?" Then Bruce says, "Imagine what I would do in seven!". Obviously, that is the reference to Genesis.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The line: "Imagine what I could do in seven." is incorrect. The bible says God did everything in 6 days, and on the 7th day he rested.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Bruce: God, why do you hate me?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "I Am Not an Animal: Planet of the Men and Women (#1.2)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

The Power

Jim Carrey delivers his trademark antics in this little comedy gem about the responsibility of playing God.

Starring: Jim Carrey, Morgan Freeman, Jennifer Anniston I was really quite skeptical the first time I watched this movie. I mean, what a conceptual NIGHTMARE. Jim Carrey playing God? Nothing is sacred anymore.

Well, this movie is hardly sacred, but it also is not sacrilegious, at least not to any great extent. Yes, Jim Carrey has the powers of God for a while, but he is not God. Confused? I'll give you the low down.

Jim Carrey plays Bruce Nolan, a reporter who is down on his luck and feeling very unsuccessful with his life. He lives with his beautiful girlfriend, Grace (Anniston), and you can tell right off the bat that they love each other, but the relationship is on fairly shaky ground.

Then Bruce gets a shot at anchorman, only to have it underhandedly stolen by Evan Baxter. Obviously not please, Bruce shares his thoughts with the world through the television in a way which is comical and definitely worthy of getting him fired.

Much complaining and griping about God later, Bruce gets a page. After a while he gets tired of it calling, so he responds and goes to the Omni Presents building (heh). There he meets God (Freeman), who is the Boss, Electrician, and Janitor of the building. I found this highly amusing. God is the Boss, the Holy Spirit is the Electrician, and Jesus Christ is the Janitor. Think about it. Boss, obvious. Electrician, the guy who keeps everything running. Janitor, the guy who cleans up the mess that the world has left. BRILLIANT.

Anyway, Bruce is a little skeptical about having actually met God, but when God gives Bruce his powers and gives him a shot at playing God, he starts to believe a bit. Wonder why. Enter the flagrant abuse of powers for personal gain and to abuse the enemies.

Since this is Hollywood, Bruce obviously eventually smartens up, learns his lesson, and starts using his powers for the good of the world. In the end he cries out for God to take it away and prays that His will be done, not Bruce's.

Since it is Jim Carrey, the movie is quite amusing, and there are definitely some highly entertaining moments in it. The movie is not perfect theology, but for Hollywood, it is definitely a good attempt. Many statements in the film can be quite thought provoking and even challenging, and I applaud Tom Shadyac for his effort in this movie.

So, while far from perfect, definitely an amusing popcorn movie with a little bit of thought behind it.

Bottom Line: 3.5 out of 4 (worth a view or two)