The Number 23

Staring one of my all time favorite comedian/actors Jim Carrey, "The Number 23" is one of the years biggest surprises. This story of obsession co-stars Virginia Madson and Logan Lerman, who do exceptionally well at their roles.

Walter Sparrow (Jim Carrey) is a living a normal life with a son (Logan Lerman), a loyal wife (Virginia Madson), and a mediocre job as a dog catcher. His life take a turn for the worst when he is late to pick up his wife, thanks to Ned, a dog he was chasing. His wife stumbles upon a book with the title "The Number 23" that was written by a mysterious author named Topsy Kretts. After reading a couple chapters of this book, he finds similarities between the character in the book and himself. He soon learns that Fingerling, the character in the book, commits an unspeakable murder.

This is a true spellbinder of a thriller. Jim Carrey owns this gripping thriller that will keep you guessing from start to finish. This is an enthralling piece of film-making from Joel Schumacher, who I am not a big fan of. This tops all of his work put together. Not that many people liked Jim Carrey performance, but I thought that he look very comfortable on screen. The dialog has such a dark, yet suttle tone to it. Lets put it this way, I can't see anyone pulling off this role other than Jim Carrey. I like him more in dramas than I do in comedies. The only thing is the film is a tad unsure of itself.

"The Number 23" is neatly collected. The slow pace worked well for me, thanks to the juicy performance by Carrey. Schumacher directs this with such gracefulness that it is hard to turn away from. This edge-of-your-seat thriller that does the one thing that it intended to do, and that is thrill you to the bone. To top everything off, I enjoyed the ending. Even the color red has it's own characteristic in the film.

Jim Carrey's downfall? I think not. This was a solid movie with a solid performance from Jim Carrey, who should deserve more praise for this role. I am a big Jim Carrey fan and for those who think that serious work isn't for him, I will have to beg the differ. This is one of the years most underrated films. Don't listen to the critics Jim, your still the most talented man alive. 4/5 stars