Shikaka! Ace Ventura is one of my favorite movie characters of all time! This character catapulted Jim Carrey from small TV character actor from 'In Living Color', to A-list celebrity, when the film, 1994's Ace Ventura: Pet Detective became a surprise hit. The first movie was such a hit, it spawn a somewhat funny animated television series (1995 to 2000) and one really bad 2009 spin-off children movie, Ace Ventura, Jr.: Pet Detective. The best from all of these films, had to be the 1995 sequel, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. This film has developed a large cult following since its release and I agree with them. This movie in my opinion, is probably the funniest Jim Carrey's movie in the 1990s. Yes, I said it! Jim Carrey reprises his role as the title character Ace Ventura, a detective who specializes in retrieval of tame and captive animals. This time, Ace Ventura is heading to Africa, to recover a sacred bat stolen from poachers, before two African tribes go to war because of it. Directed by Steve Oedekerk, the movie did a great job in location. I really thought, the movie was filmed in some type of Africa country. Actually, the film shot in various locations in and around Charleston, South Carolina, San Antonio, Texas and British Columbia, Canada. Who knew! The writing for this film is just amazing. Not only is the jokes, more hits than misses to the funny bone, but it's very clever with its gross out puns/sight gags, pop culture references, and movie parody humor of previous films like 1993's Cliffhanger. The crime solving mystery of the film is also pretty brilliant. You really get into the story, as Ace Ventura recover clue after clue. The best highlight of the film is Jim Carrey's acting. The way, he can move his body in a silly way for slapstick humor was astonishing. In his day, nobody could touch this guy for pure facial and voice comedy. You can tell that Carrey is having the time of his life just ad-libbing and winging it. Yes, he did overact, a bit here and became more like a cartoon than a person, but his overacting as Ace made it, very entertaining. This was Jim Carrey in his prime. He was and still is a mad genius at making people laughs, but lately hasn't found good material and tamed done since then. If there was any reason to watch this film, it's for his performance here. You'll find yourself, laughing more than once. I remember my whole family were crying, unable to breath with laughter the first time watching this. Spank you very much, Ace Ventura for making me laugh. The main theme song is pretty catchy by Robert Folk. The movie does a great job using establish songs like 'Secret Agent Man' & 'Lion Sleeps Tonight' to add to the humor. Indeed, the movie did come with alternative versions, when aired in syndication in International countries and on television. In order to receive a PG certificate, the UK release of the film features a number of cuts, equaling one minute and 35 seconds for the theatrical release, plus a further three seconds when re-classified for home video. This version is the worst, as it cut really funny scenes like Bumblebee tuna balls joke, and alternative version of the 'rhino scene'. Don't watch this version. Just find the US standard. Nature Calls does have considerably less offensive swearing, sexual jokes, and vulgarity than the previous film, but it doesn't really affects the quality of the film. Yes, there was Product Placement. An obvious ad of Subway is placed on a highway billboard early in When Nature Calls, but it was used as a gag about being in nature. The pacing is a bit off for a 90 minute film. Honestly, they could have cut like the whole first 15 minutes as it takes him forever to get to Africa and the story to start. None of the first part in the Himalayas and Tibet were that funny to begin with. The supporting cast was a bit missing. The female lead, the Princess (Sophie Okonedo) was barely in the film, and just there for somebody for Ace to bang with. It's a far cry from big female leads of Courtney Cox and Sean Young from the last movie. At less, this movie get a really good funny supporting character name Oda (Maynard Eziashi) that made scenes way funny. Ian McNeice as Fulton Greenwall & Bob Gunton as Burton Quinn & Simon Callow really did work, well as the straight man stock characters to Jim Carrey's outrageous cartoon character. Even fellow 'In Living Color' cast member, Tommy Davidson, got a few laughs in, as the Tiny Warrior. Overall: It's a movie that you find yourself, rewatching it time after time, because it's so funny. You'll find yourself repeating the funny phrases and wisecracks. Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls is a must watch, must have, film to add to your comedy collection.
Review of Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
