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Alas, I went elsewhere for my favorite five. I was surprised to find that there is an even mix here between comedy and serious flicks, a testament to Carrey’s versatility and range.

5. I Love You Phillip Morris

Perhaps the least known of the movies I mention in this column, I Love You Phillip Morris tells the true story of con artist and impostor Steven Jay Russell, and the lengths he went to in order to be with a former fellow inmate, Phillip Morris, with whom he had fallen in love. The plot sounds serious, but in typical Carrey fashion it is as much slapstick and nuanced comedy as it is drama.

Indeed, Phillip Morris is a romantic comedy, and Carrey delivers the comedic lines of the film with the impeccable timing that has always characterized him. The film shows his range not only for playing a gay character, but also for playing loon with a reason to be crazy: love (as opposed to just a loon for the sake of it as in other of his movies).

Life-based dramedies are never easy to deliver on, but Carrey’s performance makes it seem easy in this case. The other elements of the movie, admittedly, fall a bit more flat, which makes this movie overall just good instead of great - but Carrey’s performance is memorable nonetheless.

4. Bruce Almighty.

Of the straight-up comedies in Carrey’s filmography, I think Bruce Almighty is arguably one of the best. Carrey plays Bruce who, as you likely know, curses God after a series of unlucky turns, and mocks him for the way he’s doing his job. A despondent God, played by (who else) Morgan Freeman, appears and makes him God temporarily, to show him a lesson. Hilarity, of course, ensues.

As one would expect, Carrey’s comedic timing is also impeccable here. But the comedy in the movie is significantly less crass (except for a few potty scenes involving Jennifer Aniston) than some of Carrey’s earlier films, and also pointedly more nuanced. The movie has a point to get across, both about power and wisdom, and about how one leads one’s life in the face of adversity - more precisely, how difficulties can be trivial if seen from a different life. The lessons to be learned may sound somewhat trite and out of place in a Jim Carrey movie, but they are delivered with sufficient subtly and quietness as to be welcome sweet reminders of our relationships with others, and not an out-of-place message that falls flat in the face of the comedic center of the story.

Bruce is perhaps one of Carrey’s more mature comedy roles, and stands the test of time as a movie one can easily rewatch and enjoy for its simple but deep heart.

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