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Critical Consensus: "Dick & Jane" Not Much Fun; "Cheaper" Is Bankrupt
by Tim Ryan | December 21, 2005
Discuss Article
This week's wide releases include a remake ("Fun With Dick and Jane") and a sequel to a remake ("Cheaper By the Dozen 2"). Will critics be laughing at these comedies?

What is "Fun With Dick and Jane?" Is it slapstick? Satire? Social commentary? Dark comedy? Is it… fun? To the last question, the critics have an answer: sometimes, but not often enough. This remake, starring Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni, updates the 1977 Jane Fonda/George Segal comedy about two yuppies who steal to regain their riches. The plot is updated for the Enron era, and it also adds a scene with Mr. Carrey in a ninja costume. Yes, wacky Jim Carrey is back, but the scribes say "Fun's" tone is too much of a muddle to really hit any of its targets. At 33 percent on the Tomatometer, this one's a pretty plain "Jane." And it's Carrey's worst-reviewed film since "Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls," which scored 26 percent.

The Baker family is back in "Cheaper By the Dozen 2." Steve Martin, Bonnie Hunt, Hilary Duff and Eugene Levy star. There are lots of family hi-jinks. Despite some mild conflict, everyone loves one another. The first one made tons of money. The critics are pretty united in their disdain for "Cheaper By the Dozen 2," a film that, at 11 percent on the Tomatometer, is a point short of a dozen itself. It's also substantially below the first "Cheaper," which scored two dozen on the Tomatometer.

Recent Jim Carrey Movies
--------------------------------
71% -- Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)
93% -- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
50% -- Bruce Almighty (2003)
42% -- The Majestic (2001)
51% -- How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

Recent Steve Martin Movies
----------------------------------
62% -- Shopgirl (2005)
24% -- Cheaper By the Dozen (2003)
34% -- Bringing Down the House (2003)
37% -- Novocaine (2001)
66% -- Joe Gould's Secret (2001)

Related Items
Movie: Fun with Dick and Jane
Novocaine
The Majestic
Bringing Down the House
Bruce Almighty
Cheaper by the Dozen
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Shopgirl
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Joe Gould's Secret
Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
Fun with Dick and Jane
Celeb: Hilary Duff
Jane Fonda
Eugene Levy
Steve Martin
George Segal
Bonnie Hunt
Téa Leoni
Jim Carrey
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Comments (1-3 of 3 posts) | Reply
lovelykeira
lovelykeira writes:
on Dec 22 2005 02:02 PM

That's too bad about Fun with Dick and Jane, I'm still going to see it this weekend though. 35% isn't enough to stop a die hard Jim Carrey fan from going.

(Reply to this)
southfrisco
southfrisco writes:
on Dec 22 2005 06:17 PM

In reply to this comment (#829232)
Good luck. While I am a Jim fan this one just doesn't look all that funny to me and I just don't like Tea.

(Reply to this)
codgie2
codgie2 writes:
on Dec 22 2005 07:10 PM

I liked it...I thought it was quite funny. However, they would have benefited from a few more scenes showing their descent into poverty...it was too abrupt, as if they had no saving whatsoever. But I laughed a lot.

(Reply to this)
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