The Mask (1994)

Being a superhero comics reader, I tend to see The Mask primarily as a superhero movie. When I look at the best superhero movies yet made, the list of really good ones is quite short. The first X-Men movie was good, the Spider-Man movies are decent, and the best of the lot may be Mystery Men. I also like Sky High. But, one I frequently forget to consider is The Mask. It is actually just as good as Mystery Men, and so one of the two best superhero movies yet. It is a total comedy classic, also in terms of Jim Carrey's acting. Everything is done perfectly and for reasons that make sense to the plot, and it's just fantastically funny: "I can explain everything!!" "Explain THIS!" "Ummmmm...."

Taking its cues from Tex Avery cartoon is genius, and complementing everything with superb (for the time) special effects that still hold up today is just brilliant. This movie has it all, and it all gels in perfect hyper-slapstick harmony. The story is cool, the acting and casting are inspired, and Cameron Diaz is pitiably innocent and adorable.

A fine, fine piece of movie-making.

9 out of 10.

Fmovies: It's hard to use Jim Carrey in a movie. He's very good at his rapid-fire mimicry routine, but how can it ever be anything other than a diversion from both character and story? (Very rarely is it a pleasant diversion. `Ace Ventura' was unendurable.) And yet, what else can you do with him?

The `Mask' solves the problem so neatly it almost cheats. The story is ABOUT someone with a double life - so by day, Carrey does all the character and story stuff, and by night, wearing the mask, he does his stand-up schtick. The two are as integrated as they need to be. It's pulled off with such an air of innocence I can't possibly complain. SOME of the clichés (those to do with the police especially) are so very worn out that even the most thorough of movie-goers is surprised to find them still alive; but the writer seems to have been honestly unaware that they were clichés, so that's okay.

I was told that the film is saturated with animation in-jokes. I couldn't spot very many. Stanley-with-the-mask has the soul of a Tex Avery cartoon character: I suspect that's all there is to it. The computer animation, or the computer-enhancement of Carrey's animation, is tastefully done. It never looks pasted over the top of the footage the way so much computer animation does. (`The Mask' failed to win an Oscar in the special effects category - like so many other more deserving films, it was beaten by `Forrest Gump'.) The Cuban dance numbers are irresistible, as is Stanley's pet dog. Sure, `The Mask' is no masterpiece, but it's a clever, charming film that richly deserved its runaway success.

This was the movie that got me into Jim Carrey (though I'd seen him on "In Living Color" a couple of times), and it's still my favorite, though Ace Ventura #1 was also kind of funny.

The great thing about this film is that Jim is actually really restrained all throughout, only going into goof ball mode when he puts on the Mask. He's pretty likable and engaging here, not quite as prone to irritating some audience members like he did in "Batman Forever" and "Ace Ventura #2". Cameron Diaz... my God, she looked SO GOOD here, how have her looks faded so quickly since this film? She looks so... plastic now, kind of like a giant Barbie doll.

One of the big standout scenes in this one is Jim singing "Cuban Pete" to escape all the cops. Not that the other Mask gags are unfunny, but Cuban Pete really stands out. Too bad the cartoon Mask didn't have a little more restraint to it.

The Mask fmovies. This is easily Jim Carrey's greatest picture! Not only that but in my opinion this was one of the funniest films of the `90s. This is such a fun movie that you can see it 10 times and it's still as fun as the first time. The film stars Jim Carrey in another amazing performance and the BEAUTIFUL Cameron Diaz in her debut.

Also this is kind of like the Rocky Horror Picture Show of my generation. I remember Halloween 1995 when my friends and I dressed up as the characters from this movie and did the Cuban Beat! :)

4(****)out of 4(****)stars

An ENTERTAINING MASTERPIECE!!!!

Actually, I saw The Mask by accident. I wet to the cinema with my friend to watch something. When we arrived at the cinema and saw the poster showing The Mask we did not feel like watching it. But as it was a long way home we decided to go and see the film. And we enjoyed the movie so much that we decided to go to see it next day again. The first time we watched it we did not catch everything as our eyes were flooded with tears of laugh and our bellies hurt form laugh cramps. The story is really catching and Jim Carry is simply fabulous. The plot makes you think what it would be like if you had the mask and what you would do with it. Stanley Ippkiss in his funny quest made me be happy with what I am and what I have. The Mask is undoubtedly one of my most favorite comedies and it has a steady place on my video shelf.

Broad, inventive comedy stars Carrey as a repressed, down-on-his-luck banker whose once uneventful life is dramatically changed when he uncovers a mysterious ancient mask that brings out his innermost desires. After developing a close bond and gradual affection for a sexy songbird and prospective client (Diaz), he then tangles with her ruthless, lowlife gangster boyfriend (Greene). Lively, imaginative comedy with big laughs and nifty effects that almost make you feel like you're watching a live-action cartoon. The violence borders on extreme, but Carrey is in peak form and provides more than enough classic moments to make up for it. A must for Carrey fans. ***