Fun With Dick and Jane...
If you are going to make a comedy, and in the process convey some political message, you had better make sure your movie has these three components:
1. It had better be funny. It is a comedy after all.
2. It had better be smart. If you are going to get political on me, say something worth saying. If you don't, then that is going to ruin much of the comedy of the movie, because no one wants a funny movie to turn into a bad sermon (and Lord knows I have heard some of those, and, gulp, to my dismay I have preached some of those as well).
3. It had better be coherent within your film. In other words, do not contradict the very point you are making by saying something else for the rest of the movie.
Unfortunately for Fun with Dick and Jane, they only scored well on one of these three points. The movie definitely had some great laughs, but most of these laughs were ruined by a funny movie that turned into a bad sermon (see warning for such transition above).
Dick and Jane star Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni, both of whom are quite funny. The movie is set in a clear suburban landscape, complete with identical houses, cars, lawns, etc. There is a race to have the best car, the best house, the best pool, and the best job. Thus, Fun With Dick and Jane touches on the American Dream, or at least what has become the American Dream.
The story takes a turn for the worse when Dick finds out that his company is going under, and although he has been elevated to Vice President of Communications, he is now unemployed. What ensues is an over the top commentary with many funny laughs, on American corporations as well as American greed.
This leads to a mixed bag of some great comedy but some horrible conclusions as well. Dick and Jane condemns the corruption at the top of the corporate ladder (remember Enron, Arthur Andersen?). They call out the corrupt CEO's who remain billionaires while their lower level employees lose everything. This, however, is where Dick and Jane simply breaks down.
For example, the movie condemns the greed of the CEO, but not the greed of Dick and Jane's characters, who steal in order for them to get their tv, nanny, and $600,000 home back. More than that, the movie shows others who reverted to crimes (selling pot/more theft) after losing their jobs in Dick's company. The problem is that in the end, they are rewarded. This is hard to fathom given that the movie is built on the premise that the greed of the CEO is wrong.
At this point, I think it is important to note that the problem is not with the movie, but with American society. We are greedy, but most people would never see themselves that way. After all, they always have the CEO's from Enron, Worldcom, etc., to look at. And, if I am not as greedy as those guys, then obviously I'm not that bad.
The problem is that money and greed will never lead to happiness, and that is one of the fundamental problems with Dick and Jane. Instead of your average Christmas movie, where one finds a life beyond possessions, Dick and Jane teaches that life is in the possessions. And as long as there is someone more greedy than you are, then you are justified in committing crimes.
The movie is funny. You will laugh. But I hope that you will also look deeper, to see the culture that this movie upholds. Jesus said a very harsh thing at one point, "You cannot love both God and money." Unfortunately, too often we try to hold on to both, and the product is ruined lives. I pray you'll look beyond American greed and selfishness to a Savior that defined giving and love.
1. It had better be funny. It is a comedy after all.
2. It had better be smart. If you are going to get political on me, say something worth saying. If you don't, then that is going to ruin much of the comedy of the movie, because no one wants a funny movie to turn into a bad sermon (and Lord knows I have heard some of those, and, gulp, to my dismay I have preached some of those as well).
3. It had better be coherent within your film. In other words, do not contradict the very point you are making by saying something else for the rest of the movie.
Unfortunately for Fun with Dick and Jane, they only scored well on one of these three points. The movie definitely had some great laughs, but most of these laughs were ruined by a funny movie that turned into a bad sermon (see warning for such transition above).
Dick and Jane star Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni, both of whom are quite funny. The movie is set in a clear suburban landscape, complete with identical houses, cars, lawns, etc. There is a race to have the best car, the best house, the best pool, and the best job. Thus, Fun With Dick and Jane touches on the American Dream, or at least what has become the American Dream.
The story takes a turn for the worse when Dick finds out that his company is going under, and although he has been elevated to Vice President of Communications, he is now unemployed. What ensues is an over the top commentary with many funny laughs, on American corporations as well as American greed.
This leads to a mixed bag of some great comedy but some horrible conclusions as well. Dick and Jane condemns the corruption at the top of the corporate ladder (remember Enron, Arthur Andersen?). They call out the corrupt CEO's who remain billionaires while their lower level employees lose everything. This, however, is where Dick and Jane simply breaks down.
For example, the movie condemns the greed of the CEO, but not the greed of Dick and Jane's characters, who steal in order for them to get their tv, nanny, and $600,000 home back. More than that, the movie shows others who reverted to crimes (selling pot/more theft) after losing their jobs in Dick's company. The problem is that in the end, they are rewarded. This is hard to fathom given that the movie is built on the premise that the greed of the CEO is wrong.
At this point, I think it is important to note that the problem is not with the movie, but with American society. We are greedy, but most people would never see themselves that way. After all, they always have the CEO's from Enron, Worldcom, etc., to look at. And, if I am not as greedy as those guys, then obviously I'm not that bad.
The problem is that money and greed will never lead to happiness, and that is one of the fundamental problems with Dick and Jane. Instead of your average Christmas movie, where one finds a life beyond possessions, Dick and Jane teaches that life is in the possessions. And as long as there is someone more greedy than you are, then you are justified in committing crimes.
The movie is funny. You will laugh. But I hope that you will also look deeper, to see the culture that this movie upholds. Jesus said a very harsh thing at one point, "You cannot love both God and money." Unfortunately, too often we try to hold on to both, and the product is ruined lives. I pray you'll look beyond American greed and selfishness to a Savior that defined giving and love.
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