Yes Man poster & wallpaper

Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel, Bradley Cooper

A man signs up for a self-help program based on one simple principle: say yes to everything... and anything. At first, unleashing the power of "yes" transforms his life in amazing and unexpected ways,...( read more  read more... ) but he soon discovers that opening up his life to endless possibilities can have its drawbacks.

Flixster Users

72% liked it

278,968 ratings

Critics

43% liked it

143 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 44 min.

Directed by: Peyton Reed

Release Date: December 19, 2008

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DVD Release Date: April 7, 2009

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Flixster Reviews (29,270)

  • stuartb1234
    October 8, 2009
    stuartb1234
    likeable and funny
  • liquidchick76
    October 4, 2009
    liquidchick76
    formulaic, but Zooey Deschanel is charming.
  • danperry17
    September 20, 2009
    danperry17
    Just turn your brain off and love it: it's great to see that Jim Carrey is still Jim Carrey! Physical comedy is back. The movie isn't great, but it will make you laugh, and true to form I guess I'm taking it's advice: don't be a no-man! A lot of fun, ridiculous scenes and just ch...( read more)arming enough that you look past the low-brow bent of the film, it's got some truly hilarious moments. Lots of fun to watch.
  • TheMachinist
    July 21, 2009
    TheMachinist
    "I am gone-o-reha. That didn't sound right.."

    All of us are scared of living the same boring life with even more boring routines everyday. Could we change this if we said YES more often?

    Jim Carrey is a loan officer who's divorced and tries to avoid his friends. Enjoying rental...( read more) DVD's sounds as a better idea than going out with his best friends. An old acquaintance gets him to go to a Yes seminar that will eventually change his life... Instead of saying no, Carl Allen (Carrey) has to say yes, or at least try to, to everything.

    The comedy is a bit forced at the beginning but when Allen starts to get used to saying yes, the movie gets a lot funnier. There are some scenes that will surely give plenty of laughs but on the side there are also many uneven scenes. And now while I'm at it, the ending could've been better, instead of being "safe".

    Jim Carrey does his patent face twisting, or what you may call it, but what saves this film from being totally average is the supporting cast. Bradley Cooper, playing Allen's best friend, has some very nice dialogue but the one that I loved is Zooey Deschanel's (what an awesome name that is!) character as Allen's love interest. Damn, I've seen her on some occasions ('Weeds' series, 'Winter Passing' and 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy) and always enjoyed watching her work. Truly a nice actor and a beautiful face combined. Want to see more of her! Another actor worth mentioning is Rhys Darby as Allen's boss at the bank. Little did I know of him but he was genuinely funny and stole many scenes from Carrey. I want to attend Harry Potter parties like the ones he arranged!

    If you liked 'Liar Liar' and other similar Carrey comedies, you might wanna check this one out. It doesn't stand as one of Carrey's best works but will surely give some very nice laughs. And Zooey Deschanel is surely a reason why you should watch this...
  • PvtCaboose91
    July 14, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "The era of "yes" has begun."


    More than anything else, Yes Man is an opportunity for Jim Carrey to reclaim his bygone slapstick glory days following a fleeting, unsuccessful venture into drama (The Number 23) and a restrained period in animation (Hor

    ...( read more)ton Hears a Who!). Carrey harkens back to his usual tricks here, making us laugh the good old-fashioned way in this screen adaptation of the novel of the same name by satirical writer Danny Wallace (who makes a brief cameo in the film). The primary narrative of Yes Man - a man who decides to change his life by saying "yes" to everything - is more or less a retread of another successful Jim Carrey vehicle: Liar Liar. Unfortunately, too, every plot-related aspect of Yes Man - the construction of the story, the set-up, the pay-off, the conflict and the resolution - is the very definition of predictability. But it's Carrey's oddball performance, the laughs and the genuinely engaging romantic subplot that makes the stale material feel fresh and renewed. This is not a masterpiece by any stretch, but it is a heart-warming, pleasant diversion worth a few hours of your time.


    The story tracks a lonely, miserable corporate drone named Carl Allen (Carrey). Due to his depression following a fairly recent divorce, Carl has given up on life and says "no" to every opportunity to do anything apart from sitting in his apartment watching movies and being unhappy. When an old acquaintance (Higgins) urges Carl to attend a seminar, however, he ends up enrolling in a personal development program based on a very simple principal: say "yes" to every opportunity that comes your way. Carl finds his existence transformed, leading to some startling changes. He develops a relationship with a musician/photographer/aerobics instructor named Allison (Deschanel), and is unexpectedly promoted.


    Once Carl swallows his pessimism, Yes Man switches into slapstick overdrive, observing the pickles that Carl gets himself into as a "yes man". The challenges he faces range from hilarious (Norman's Harry Potter party) to downright icky (accepting a sexual favour from his elderly neighbour). But eventually the film descends into familiar territory, culminating in an extremely clichéd final act. The laughs come to a dead halt once the narrative becomes trapped in a mundane break-up subplot and Carrey is forced to claw his way out of the trite distraction.


    The messages behind Yes Man are simple: get the most out of life, and be nice to your peers. This Jim Carrey vehicle does borrow heavily from a great number of films (not just the aforementioned Liar Liar but also The Bucket List and more or less every generic romantic comedy in recent memory), but there's nothing wrong with borrowing if it works, and Yes Man works pretty well despite a large offering of formula.


    Yes Man supplies some big laughs, a few good chuckles, and a bunch of mildly amusing moments. A lot of music is provided by an alternative Pop/Rock group known as the Eels, while some of the songs are performed by Zooey Deschanel and her band in the film (Munchausen by Proxy). The songs are truly excellent here, offering a terrific oddball feel. At the helm of the picture is Peyton Reed who provides plenty of energy and generates a glorious fast pace. Yet the concept of Yes Man provides a serious narrative problem - if saying "yes" to every situation improves Carl's life, there's no conflict. There's some wasted potential here too, let's face it. Carl could have gotten himself into a great number of additional scenarios (like those from Danny Wallace's novel), but disappointingly few are exploited.


    For his performance, Carrey is a bit more restrained than usual, and his character comes across as a genuinely likable guy. His rubber face and manic energy are welcome here, with his enthusiasm helping to sell the weaker jokes. After beginning with a few nods to his "old self" (the man we saw throughout most of his '90s output), Carrey settles down to play a straightforward romantic comedy protagonist. Meanwhile the impossibly gorgeous and lovely Zooey Deschanel is the film's secret weapon. She avoids overacting - she's low-key and lets her expressive eyes convey her character's emotions. Her singing voice is also utterly angelic. The success of a romantic comedy depends on the two leads. Fortunately, even despite an 18-year age gap, Deschanel and Carrey have it - the chemistry necessary for the romantic aspect of the movie to gain traction. Their nice chemistry is assisted by Deschanel's disarmingly off-kilter line readings and abundant charisma.
    The supporting cast is just as good - Rhys Darby is a particular standout as Carl's boss/buddy, while Terence Stamp is terrific during his brief screen-time, and Bradley Cooper does his best with an underwritten best friend role.


    Yes Man is an amiable and entertaining feel-good romantic comedy. It never grows tedious, and it's never coated in too much saccharine. The characters are endearing, the premise is intriguing, the laughs are amusing, and it encourages us to get the most out of life. Sometimes that's enough to warrant a recommendation.
  • iwelsch
    November 19, 2009
    iwelsch
    a crzy funny wacked up moive
  • marieantoinnetteb
    November 19, 2009
    marieantoinnetteb
    a funny movie that has lesson in it. makes you rethink your life amd to be more open to changes or opportunities.
  • kristy5ukwa
    November 19, 2009
    kristy5ukwa
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  • jatt2302
    November 19, 2009
    jatt2302
    humourous n truthful
  • anotherwhitemeat
    November 18, 2009
    anotherwhitemeat
    Some laughs but nowhere near as funny as I had been led to believe. At this point in his career, as long as Jim Carrey isn't making The Number 23, people are going to say this is his funniest since (fill in the blank).

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Critic Reviews

January 5, 2009
Nigel Andrews, The Financial Times

Yes Man founders on a weak script and the rock of Carrey's alarmingly subdued shtick. What has happened to the man who used to combine the verbal surrealism of James Joyce with the body movements of S... full review

December 28, 2008
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Reed takes on a fun, but not exactly brilliant screenplay and turns in a comedy funny enough to while away a couple of pleasant hours this holiday season. full review

December 21, 2008
Mike McGranaghan, The Aisle Seat

There is nothing new or ambitious about Yes Man. It is intended to be a textbook Jim Carrey silly comedy, and honestly, that's just fine by me. full review

December 19, 2008
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

There are flat performances in the film, false situations and bad lines, but the laughs are there and the message about personal transformation is timeless. full review

December 19, 2008
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

Not far from that of Liar Liar, one of Mr. Carrey's biggest hits of the mid-'90s...That film was a philosophical tour de force compared with this one. full review

December 19, 2008
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

If you're thinking 'yuck,' you're right. full review

December 19, 2008
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

With Yes Man, Carrey has bled the well dry, doing everything he knows how to do, over and over again, just to prove that he still knows how to do it. full review

December 19, 2008
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The comedy, to the extent there is any, consists mainly of Carrey's verbal asides and strained reactions to people. The script gives him very little to work with. full review

December 19, 2008
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

Yes Man is a typical Carrey vehicle (schematically, it's a lot like Liar Liar), but it's better than most of them due to a top-notch supporting cast. full review

December 19, 2008
J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader

It's nice to see a high-concept comedy with such a generous concept. full review

View more Yes Man reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

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    April 20, 2009
    issabella44
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  • powamunga
    December 27, 2008
    powamunga
    I was worried, his supervisor friend was going to come out of the closet at some stage. That would have put Jim Carrey in a sticky situation, just like the neighbour...with the false teeth, ewww. Cringe worthy indeed.
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Yes Man Trivia

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