Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

Name: Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Genre: Action, Mystery, Thriller, Comedy
Released: February 4, 1994
Duration: 86 min
Rating: 37
Cast: Courteney Cox, Jim Carrey

1994

METASCORE

Generally unfavorable reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 263 Ratings

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7.1	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 263 Ratings

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Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

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Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: February 4, 1994 | PG-13

Starring: Courteney Cox, Jim Carrey

Summary: He's the best there is, in fact, he's the only one there is! He's Ace Ventura Pet Detective. Jim Carrey is on the case to find the Miami Dolphins' missing mascot and quarterback Dan Marino. He goes eyeball to eyeball with a man-eating shark, stakes out the Miami Dolphins and woos and wows the ladies. Whether he's undercover, under fire orHe's the best there is, in fact, he's the only one there is! He's Ace Ventura Pet Detective. Jim Carrey is on the case to find the Miami Dolphins' missing mascot and quarterback Dan Marino. He goes eyeball to eyeball with a man-eating shark, stakes out the Miami Dolphins and woos and wows the ladies. Whether he's undercover, under fire or underwater, he always gets his man -- or beast. (Warner Bros.)… Expand

Director: Tom Shadyac

Genre(s): Action, Mystery, Thriller, Comedy

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 86 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

Rita Kempley

A riot from start to finish, Carrey's first feature comedy is as cheerfully bawdy as it is idiotically inventive. Read full review

Chris Willman

He's so over-energized from the start you keep thinking he'll wear out his welcome pronto; an hour and a half later, his lunacy is still hard to take your eyes off. [04Feb1994 Pg. F6]

Desson Thomson

Treat this project as you would a safari: It has its slow parts but the wildlife makes it worthwhile. Read full review

Steven Gaydos

Seemingly clueless as to how best to utilize Carrey, or make humorous hay out of its pet-loving shamus' central character, Ventura fails to place either Carrey or Ace in the winner's circle of memorable screen crazies. Read full review

James Berardinelli

From the start, it's obvious that this is a vehicle for his comedy, and it mostly works -- for about ten to fifteen minutes. After that, Carrey's act gradually grows less humorous and more tiresome, and the laughter in the audience seems forced. Read full review

Marjorie Baumgarten

Manic energy is the term that comes most readily to mind when describing Ace Ventura. Read full review

Owen Gleiberman

Carrey suggests an escaped mental patient impersonating a game-show host-and, what's worse, his hyperbolically obnoxious shtick is the whole damned show. Read full review

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User Reviews

DanH

Aug 15, 2008

Very funny and goofy movie. Not for snooty ppl i'm guessing by the critics reviews, lol. So many bad reviews, and 1 of the funniest well known comedy movies to date. Crazy!

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Dynexicon27

Jan 8, 2022

This movie is a Jim Carrey vehicle but it is an absolute CLASSIC of a film and one of the greatest comedic performances ever filmed.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

njkk

Nov 16, 2012

It takes a lot of guts to stick to a role like the one Jim Carrey played in this movie, it would have destroyed most actors careers. He is the only one that could have made this movie a success. Because without Jim Carrey, this movie would have been really bad.

3 of 6 users found this helpful33

RD.

Jan 25, 2007

Very funny movie. Carrey gives a great performance.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Kai82

Mar 29, 2021

A typical good Jim Carrey movie that would never been greenlighted today anymore. You get what you expect: A great comedy experience with a hilariously good Jim Carrey. He has its own style that is not for everyone but really entertaining for many. He was maybe to often typecast with this inA typical good Jim Carrey movie that would never been greenlighted today anymore. You get what you expect: A great comedy experience with a hilariously good Jim Carrey. He has its own style that is not for everyone but really entertaining for many. He was maybe to often typecast with this in his career and nearly vanished until he saved his career with his exceptional performance as Dr. Robotnik in the Sonic movie (which I recommend by the way). This movie started a franchise with 3 movies (1 unknown TV adaptation which I just recently discovered and have yet to watch) and an animated TV series (vanished quickly and I know only a few episodes). Back to the movie: The title explains already a lot. Ace Ventura is a pet detective who saves / searches missing animals. He is an animal rights activists and critical of humans that threat animals poorly. He is Jim Carrey role eccentric, socially unadapted and his methods are unordinary (but successful). He is hired when the dolphin mascot of the Miami Dolphins is kidnapped shortly before the Super Bowl. For those who are not that much invested in sports I should point out that many athletes are superstitious and things like this have huge impacts on motivation and mental attitude. Just research the “Curse of Billy Goat” for example;-). With this the hilarious detective comedy starts. It is a solid story for a comedy. However the make or break point is Jim Carrey’s performance. He is often dividing the audience. Some say he is hilariously funny and the highlight of the movies while others find him annoying and would rate his movies as trash. So this is what you must find out for yourself. For me I enjoy Jim Carrey mostly. There are some exceptions like Cable Guy and small missteps elsewhere. In this franchise I enjoy him as Ace Ventura as most jokes work. This is a fitting transition to the actors / characters, I already explained that Jim Carrey’s performance depends on your own taste of comedy. He is either brilliant or awful for you (Strangely I have not found people in the middle-ground yet). Just as sidenote: He often gets positive and negative awards or nominations for the same movie. Then we have Courteney Cox as Melissa Robinson. She gives a good performance but has not that many screentime. Sean Young as Lois Einhorn is a movie character that would get the film canceled today. Wont say why because of spoilers. The rest of the cast works well but it is a Jim Carrey movie so his hilarious performance outshines their performance somewhat. Special mention for Dan Marino as himself. He is one of the football quarterbacks that is universally acclaimed, set records but sadly never won a Super Bowl. I think I don't need to talk about visuals or soundtrack here. Overall this was an enjoyable ride and I can recommend the movie if you like Jim Carry. I will however say the sequel is better. If you dislike Jim Carrey’s humor / style I would advice to stay away from this movie and possibly from all his movies as it is not suited for you.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Untitled94

Nov 1, 2016

Very funny movie. I do kind of wish it focused more on the animals than it did, but it was still pretty good. This movie wouldn't be nearly as good if it wasn't for Jim Carry. He pulled off the role very well.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

j30

Jan 26, 2012

I can't think of a more annoying protagonist than Jim Carrey's Ace Ventura. The story is just one big headache and anxiety attack after another.

1 of 4 users found this helpful13

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