Thursday, January 05, 2006

Fun With Dick and Jane

OK...I was going to hold off on reviewing this movie out of respect for my father's birthday, but then I got to thinking, "Why should I treat this day with so much forebearance, as though it were a funeral? Yes, my father died 12 years ago, and I reverence his memory, but today was his birthday. I should celebrate life and take pleasure in everything I normally enjoy." So, having said that, I continue with my review:

By the way, this review is dedicated to my good friend Brenae. Rhonda and I inadvertantly arrived at the movie theatre 45 minutes early, and we were sooooo bored that we pulled out Rhonda's cell phone and started looking through her list of telephone numbers. We said, "Hmmmm....who wouldn't mind us bothering them while we wait?" And then we saw Brenae's number, so we called her, even though she lives in Missouri, two time zones ahead of us (there was always the chance her children were sleeping, and it would be horribly inconvenient to take our call).

When we told her what we were doing, she was very gracious and asked me to give her a full report of the film. So Brenae, this is for you:)

"Fun With Dick and Jane" is kind of an Enron spoof where Jim Carrey plays the part of "Dick" who is promoted to vice president of some department in a major corporation just before the company goes bankrupt. He tells his wife to quit her job, only to find out the company's assets have been secretly pilfered by the former CEO who has now bailed on the company and abandoned the shareholders. Dick and his wife Jane are left with vitually nothing and eventually resort to desperate measures to keep their house.

Rhonda and I didn't know what the movie was about before we saw it, but as we watched Dick and Jane reduced to financial shambles before our eyes as a result of corporate scandal, we could hardly keep from relating on a personal level. We laughed so hard, probably more out of deep personal experience with this kind of loss than because of the humor on its own merit. Dick witnessed a scandal and had his belongings repossessed. I also had my belongings repossessed. He was even reduced to driving a Ford Festiva instead of his BMW. I had my Festiva repossessed. We laughed and laughed all the way home, and secretly suspected someone watched our lives and then portrayed them on screen.

Unfortunately, I sincerely wonder if anyone would find this film nearly so funny if they had not lived through our experiences. Who knows?

Well, in the end, Dick and Jane redeem themselves in an interesting way, but I won't spoil the plot for those of you who still choose to see it. I've already said too much. Happy viewing!

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