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After reviewing the recent dud sequel, Evan Almighty, I decided I might as well go back and offer my opinion on the one that started it all, Bruce Almighty.

Bruce (Jim Carrey) is moderately successful. He has a nice apartment, a loving girlfriend Grace (Jennifer Aniston), and a pretty good job as a field reporter for Eyewitness News. His job consists of reporting on the "lighter side of the news" such as blood drives and giant cookies. He doesn't believe in God, a fact he reiterates many times and, after being passed over for an anchor job, confides to Grace that if there is a God he must be like a kid sitting over an anthill with a magnifying glass having a laugh at the expense of mankind.

I guess you can only laugh at God so many times before He shows up to tell you different, which is exactly what happened (and I never knew God looked so much like Morgan Freeman). After incessant pages, calls, and memos, all including the number seven as many times as possible, Bruce gives in and goes to a dilapidated warehouse where he meets God. God wants to go on vacation and wishes to bestow all his powers on Bruce. Since he thinks God's job is so easy he must be able to do it better, right? The only thing he can't affect is free will, which can be a bit of a bummer at times.

I have always admired Jim Carrey's talent and all-or-nothing acting style. He likes to make people laugh - and laugh hard. I'll be the first to admit some of his earlier movies were on the stupid side, but since I saw Liar Liar
I've been hooked. Carrey does not disappoint in this movie as the self-centered reporter who suddenly has the power to do anything he wants. Just don't let those prayers add up!

Aniston plays her usual role of the under-appreciated but rock-solid significant other, the "good girl" role, as I call it...I've only once seen her play any other type of character and I'd still like to see something new from her, but she has mastered the one type of role she's known to do.

As for supporting actors, Morgan Freeman put in a predictably excellent performance as God. In a minor role, up-and-coming Steve Carell plays Evan Baxter, then relatively unknown but has since made a splash as the 40-Year-Old Virgin and stars in the aforementioned dud sequel Evan Almighty. Now Carell is probably best-known for the television series that has helped out his career more than a little by his role as Michael Scott in The Office. Personally I think Carell's main claim to fame is the ability to keep an utterly straight face no matter how absurd his part may be. I was not impressed with his lead role in Evan Almighty, but he did make an intriguing secondary character in Bruce Almighty and did quite a bit with his limited screen time.

The plot is quite simple but had enough comedic devices added in that actually worked to make it quite entertaining. In fact, the first time my then-significant other watched this film I thought I'd have to give him an inhaler during the monkey scene, he was laughing so hard. The latter 1/3 of the movie does get a little soft and sappy to lead up to a light-hearted happily-ever-after ending, but I guess we all need a little mushy now and then, right? Overall, this is a good film for weeknight enjoyment.

Learn more about this author, Rebecca Brown.
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