Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995)

Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995)

 

3/10

Starring

Jim Carrey

 

Directed by Steve Oedekerk

 

If a movie that costs $15 million makes more than eight times its production cost at the box office, you can bet any Hollywood studio will greenlight a sequel. The first Ace Ventura raked in so much money that it was inevitable they’d try it again. The problem? They rushed out a sequel the very next year with a poorly developed script, answering the question we all had: “Is there such a thing as too much Ventura?”
What’s surprising is that this sequel cost twice as much to produce and also made nearly twice as much at the box office, so it was technically a success. The studio wanted to continue, but Carrey did not want to make anymore sequels to the franchise.

When you’re an eccentric on-screen detective who solves cases by stumbling onto solutions like a bumbling fool, that schtick can only work once.
In this sequel, Ventura is tasked with finding a sacred white bat named Shikaka. The catch? Ventura is terrified of bats.
He travels to a fictional place called Nibia to locate the bat and stop a tribal war between the Wachati and the Wachootoo.

I have to pause here and say, this movie felt insulting. I couldn’t get past how the tribes were portrayed. One of my biggest issues with this film is how it depicted Black people. Even as a kid, I didn’t like it, but watching it now, I detest it with a passion.
As a Black man living in the U.K., I’ve had people act surprised that I can hold a pen and write legibly in English. Movies like this perpetuate the stereotype that Africa is a place where people don’t understand technology or modern life, as if we’re still stuck in the past, wearing leaves and living in huts.

Anyway, back to the plot. Ventura has to eliminate suspects while living among the tribes.
He befriends one of the princes and is constantly pursued by a princess.
How he finds the bat, uncovers the abductors, and stops the tribal war is something you’ll have to watch the movie to find out. But honestly? Skip this one. It doesn’t do justice to the character of Ventura, and its portrayal of Black people is deeply offensive.

One thing I have to say is, I am surprised that this franchise has not gotten a reboot yet. There are many other stories they can explore, and I think the fear is, how will a very sensitive generation of today, handle the way this movie character plays onscreen