Jim Carrey

CHICAGO – One of the grand entertainment events every summer in the Windy City is the Wizard World Chicago Comic Con. TV, movie and comic book celebrities populate the event – including last year’s attendees Lauren Holly (“Dumb and Dumber”) and Joey Lawrence (“Blossom”).

CHICAGO – Some comedies improve when they climb down off the big screen and take up residence on the small one. Perhaps it’s just that we’re more forgiving at home then we are when we’re paying a fortune for tickets, parking, and popcorn. Or we’re just more accustomed to bad comedy writing on TV. However, “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone,” one of the more notable box office flops of 2013 so far (it couldn’t crack $23 million TOTAL) is not one of those better-at-home comedies. It’s still a stunniningly flat, boring piece of work and the scant special features do nothing to improve it.

LOS ANGELES – Jonathan Winters, one of the most influential comedians of the past two generations, has died of natural causes on April 11th at his home in Montecito, California. His characteristic schizophrenic comic style inspired modern funnymen like Robin Williams, George Carlin and Jim Carrey. He was 87 years old.

CHICAGO – It’s this simple – “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” just isn’t funny. Sure, there are a few laughs here and there and some of the supporting cast works but the leads are woefully miscast and most of the jokes hit with all the awkward silence of a Bennigan’s tableside magician who guesses the wrong card.

CHICAGO – I have to admit that I went into my review of “Mr. Popper’s Penguins” expecting to feel torture not unlike when I suffered through “Yogi Bear” or “Gulliver’s Travels.” Live-action family entertainment has been the other side of the coin to the influx of quality animated entertainment. For every Pixar, there’s a “Chipwrecked.” For every “How to Train Your Dragon,” there’s a “Zookeeper.” To that end, I found “Mr. Popper’s Penguins” totally harmless, mostly because Jim Carrey gives it his all and brings enough manic glee to the proceedings to keep it from falling flat.

CHICAGO – It’s the movie poster that says it all. The familiar red-headed talk show host, now bearded, resting his head against an ever-present microphone. The show must go on for “Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop.”

CHICAGO – Pity the poor penguin making pictures. Their wings cannot fly, they have no script approval or agents, just a trainer bribing them with food to hit the mark. Their presence, their cuteness, even their flightlessness are exploited for a dreadful Jim Carrey film called “Mr Popper’s Penguins.” Somebody call PETA.

CHICAGO – With all the creatively bankrupt, audience-repelling dreck clogging up theaters these days, it’s easy to see why a comedian would sign up for a challenging art house satire rather than pick up a fat, unearned pay check. Robin Williams delivered his best work in years in Bobcat Goldthwait’s “World’s Greatest Dad,” and now Jim Carrey adds to his streak of woefully underrated performances in Glenn Ficarra and John Requa’s “I Love You Phillip Morris.”

Rating: 3.0/5.0

CHICAGO – John Requa and Glenn Ficarra’s “I Love You Phillip Morris” debuted at the Sundance Film Festival nearly two years ago and was released internationally so long ago that it’s out on DVD in most markets around the world. After financial difficulties plagued the first company intent on stateside distribution, the movie sat on a shelf and most of us assumed it would be making its U.S. debut on a round shiny disc.

CHICAGO – Disney’s “A Christmas Carol” is a loud, annoying mess, a film that reimagines the Charles Dickens’ classic in ways that the author never intended, turning a morality lesson into an effects-heavy action extravaganza. Having said that, the Blu-ray release is typically-strong for one of the best companies in the world when it comes to family product. Disney can turn even a bad film into a solid Blu-ray.