Jim Carrey Birthday Special: From Making Rubber Faces to Leaving Us in Melancholy, 10 Movies Where The Mask Actor Displayed His Amazing but Underused Versatility

Jim Carrey was, and still remains one of the funniest actors in the present-age of world cinema. The Hollywood actor known for his rubber-faced antics had created a legacy for himself in the '90s with some very funny movies and performances that made him a global sensation with films like the Ace Ventura series, Dumb and Dumber, The Mask, Liar, Liar etc. In the later part of the decade, Carrey took on more serious roles, resulting in a couple of masterpieces, like The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Over the years, the actor has become quite choosy with his roles and some of his films didn't work at the box office. But the actor continues to stay in the spotlight and ensuring that any role he picks up does have something interesting to say. Sonic The Hedgehog New Trailer: New Version of Sonic Is Here To Entertain Us Along With Jim Carrey and James Marsden (Watch Video).

Jim Carrey will be seen next in the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movie, where he is playing the primary antagonist. Needless to say, we are excited about that movie. BTW, Jim Carrey is turning 58 on January 17, 2020. So let's use this occasion to pick 10 of our favourite movies of his where he entertained us with both his comedic and dramatic chops.

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

Jim Carrey first achieved global success with his rubber-faced antics in this screwball comedy that also fashions itself as a mystery, albeit not for the prudish ones! Pet Detective and its sequel When Nature Calls may not have stood the test of time, but Carrey's antics as the pet detective have cemented the place in being the most hilarious sequences of all time. Just remember that fake rhino scene!

The Mask

I believe that Carrey's rubber-faced skills were best utilised in this comicbook property to the most awesome results. Jim Carrey plays an ordinary bank employee, who finds the mask of Loki that turns him into a green-faced entity full of mischief. Director Chuck Russell had claimed in an interview that they saved most of their special effects budget, because of Carrey's flexibility.

The Cable Guy

Jim Carrey may have played an antagonist in Batman Forever, but his portrayal of a creepy everyday man in this Ben Stiller-directed black comedy is his best negative turn. Carrey plays a cable-man in this underrated comic thriller who becomes friends with a sad sack of a man in Matthew Broderick's character, and tries to interfere in his life a lot more than needed.

Liar Liar

Remade in Bollywood as Kyunki Main Jhooth Nahi Bolta starring Govinda, Liar Liar has Jim Carrey play an unscrupulous lawyer whose ability to fib and win cases makes him quite the hotshot. But his son who thinks he is a liar, wishes for him to speak the truth, and Voila! the lawyer can't utter a single lie the next, resulting in some very hilarious situations and the man learning the power of truth and honesty.

The Truman Show

After getting nearly typecast in comedy roles, Jim Carrey decided to give his choices a new spin and took on more serious roles. The result are some very great movies, one of which is this satire on reality shows. Carrey plays Truman Burbank, a grownup man who doesn't realise that his entire life has been a reality show, his loved ones are actors and every decision in his life has been made by someone else. It is a pretty great performance that unfairly never got Carrey a deserving Oscar nom.

Man on the Moon

Continuing with his then-new streak of taking more serious roles, Jim Carrey played the entertainer Andy Kaufman in this surreal drama. The funny actor stepped into some very serious method acting for the role, insisting on keeping his Kaufman persona throughout the shooting. While it did cause some troubles during the production, the end result was a fabulous performance from Carrey, that won him his second Golden Globe.

Bruce Almighty

Remade in Bollywood with Salman Khan as God Tussi Great Ho!, this comedy has Jim Carrey play a cynical, out-of-luck TV reporter, who is given God powers to make him realise that the Almighty doesn't have an easy job in hand. For a comedy, the film has some good special effects, and features Carrey in one of his funniest appearances. The actor also shows off his dramatic chops in the more serious portions of the film.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of this writer's personal favourite movies on love. If you have not heard of it and are planning to watch it thinking it to be of rainbows and frills, be ready for some real gloom and melancholy. For this Michael Gondry film, that merges sci-fi elements into the narrative, is about the pains of separation and the desperation to cling on to memories of your beloved. Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet play the estranged couple in this film, that follows a non-linear narrative and has Carrey deliver perhaps his best dramatic performance to date.

I Love You Phillip Morris

Based on a true story, Jim Carrey plays a conman who falls in love with his prison mate (Ewan McGregor), and after the latter's release from jail, the conman tries to escape the prison four times just to be with him. An underrated film, I Love You, Phillip Morris merges black comedy with romance to create a touching story with Jim Carrey in top form in one of his most risque roles.

Kick-Ass 2

Speaking of risque, what can you say about his bizarre abandonment of this film? After the Hook Elementary School shooting, Jim Carrey stopped promoting this film citing he cannot endorse the violence in the film "in all good conscience". While his decision was berated by the makers and the movie later received a critical and commercial drubbing for being an inferior sequel, Carrey still walked away with a lot of appreciation for his role of a wannabe vigilante, whose violent ways ultimately results in his own grisly death.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 17, 2020 09:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).