Bruce Almighty
There are two types of people in the world, a wise man once remarked: those who thank God for their fortune and those who curse him for their misfortune. Bruce Nolan, played by Jim Carrey in the film Bruce Almighty, is firmly of the second type.
Bruce is a moderately successful Everyman. He lives with his patient, loving girlfriend in a stylish flat and works as a reporter for a local news network. His life should be contented but instead its mediocrity scares and angers him.
Bruce is, at heart, an unhappy and resentful man. When passed over for a promotion, he finally explodes, abusing God for hating him. His rant lands him before the Almighty, who is played with an appealing mixture of authority and affection by Morgan Freeman. "You've done a lot of complaining recently," he observes, before offering Bruce his powers for a week to see if he can do any better.
It should be obvious that Bruce Almighty is not an original idea. The film is not especially profound, is riddled with philosophical problems and opts for a disappointingly schmaltzy and predictable ending.
But beneath its Hollywood superficialities, it does ask one threatening question: what do you really want? Bruce is both talented and loved but he is dehumanised by his all-too-human selfishness. Having been invested with divine power, it simply doesn't occur to him to do anything other than improve his lot or amuse himself. Yet, even with divine power and satisfied ambition, his life is still painfully empty.
Nor is he unique. In a fit of laziness he answers "Yes" to the two million or so prayers he is facing. The result is that everyone sees their football team win, their shares rocket in value and their lottery numbers come up, and the town degenerates into a riot. "Since when do people know what they really want?" Freeman muses.
Hearing a film ask such a question is encouraging. Hearing it come from the lips of a God who is recognisably, if only vaguely, Judaeo-Christian, is even more so. Given that we live in a culture more inclined to curse the Almighty for its supposed misfortune than thank him for its blessings, Bruce Almighty sounds a welcome note. Perhaps Hollywood is recognising that there's life in the old God yet.
Nick Spencer
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