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The Cable Guy (1996)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer (WGA):
Lou Holtz Jr. (written by)
Release Date:
14 June 1996 (USA)
more
Tagline:
Once you let him into your house, you'll never get him out of your life! more
Plot:
A lonely and disturbed cable guy raised on television just wants a new friend, but his target, a designer, rejects him, with bad consequences. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
3 wins
&
1 nomination
more
NewsDesk:
(28 articles)
Weekly Poll Results: Favourite Jim Carrey Movie
(From FilmJunk. 12 November 2009, 9:44 AM, PST)
Will Ferrell And Charles Napier Hang With Ken Jeong In Today's Daily TwitPic
(From MTV Movies Blog. 21 October 2009, 6:00 AM, PDT)
(From FilmJunk. 12 November 2009, 9:44 AM, PST)
Will Ferrell And Charles Napier Hang With Ken Jeong In Today's Daily TwitPic
(From MTV Movies Blog. 21 October 2009, 6:00 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
One of Carrey's Best Performances
more (296 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Jim Carrey | ... | The Cable Guy |
 | Matthew Broderick | ... | Steven M. Kovacs |
 | Leslie Mann | ... | Robin Harris |
 | Jack Black | ... | Rick |
 | George Segal | ... | Steven's Father |
 | Diane Baker | ... | Steven's Mother |
 | Ben Stiller | ... | Sam Sweet / Stan Sweet |
 | Eric Roberts | ... | Eric Roberts |
 | Janeane Garofalo | ... | Medieval Times Waitress |
 | Andy Dick | ... | Medieval Times Host |
| Harry O'Reilly | ... | Steven's Boss |
 | David Cross | ... | Sales Manager |
 | Amy Stiller | ... | Steven's Secretary |
 | Owen Wilson | ... | Robin's Date |
| Keith Gibbs | ... | Basketball Player |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for dark thematic elements and crude humor.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
96 min
Country:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Certification:
UK:12 (cut) |
Iceland:12 |
South Korea:15 |
Philippines:PG-13 |
Australia:M |
Belgium:KT |
Denmark:12 |
Finland:K-12/9 |
Germany:12 |
Italy:T |
Netherlands:AL |
Norway:11 |
Portugal:M/12 |
Singapore:PG |
Spain:13 |
Sweden:11 |
USA:PG-13 (certificate #34332)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The part of the Cable Guy was originally written for Chris Farley, but scheduling conflicts forced him to decline the role.
more
Goofs:
Continuity: During the Jousting scene when Steven hits Chip with the Lance, Chip's lance and shield fly the opposite way Chip does, but when Chip hits the ground they are right next to him.
more
Quotes:
The Cable Guy:
Pretty smooth work! I set 'em up, you knock 'em down.
Steven Kovacs: What?
The Cable Guy: Robin. I got her back for you. I juiced her up!
Steven Kovacs: How do you know we're back together?
The Cable Guy: Free cable is the ultimate aphrodisiac, Steven.
Steven Kovacs: I don't want you messing with my life!
The Cable Guy: I know! I felt bad about the other night. I wanted to make it up to you.
[pause]
The Cable Guy: So what are you doing? Wanna catch a flick?
Steven Kovacs: Look, I appreciate you helping me out with Robin. But you have to understand. I'm going to have to work *extra* hard to not screw this relationship up again. You're a very nice guy, but I just don't have any room in my life for a new friend. Okay?
[...]
more
Steven Kovacs: What?
The Cable Guy: Robin. I got her back for you. I juiced her up!
Steven Kovacs: How do you know we're back together?
The Cable Guy: Free cable is the ultimate aphrodisiac, Steven.
Steven Kovacs: I don't want you messing with my life!
The Cable Guy: I know! I felt bad about the other night. I wanted to make it up to you.
[pause]
The Cable Guy: So what are you doing? Wanna catch a flick?
Steven Kovacs: Look, I appreciate you helping me out with Robin. But you have to understand. I'm going to have to work *extra* hard to not screw this relationship up again. You're a very nice guy, but I just don't have any room in my life for a new friend. Okay?
[...]
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Jim Carrey/Soundgarden (#21.20)" (1996)
more
Soundtrack:
My Three Sons Theme
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FAQ
What are the differences between the British BBFC 12 version and the uncut version?more
more (296 total)
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When first released, Cable Guy was such an unusual departure for Jim Carrey and his usual slapstick, manic, goofy comedies that people just didn't understand it or like it. When word of Carrey's enormous $20 million paycheck for this film spread, hopes were high that Cable Guy would be smothered in Carrey's slice of hilarious dementia to the extreme.
Carrey certainly brought an air of craziness to Chip Douglas, a lonely, TV-addicted, and creepy cable installer who befriends the unwilling Matthew Broderick (here, looking just nervous and bewildered for the entire film). But something was missing from this Carrey vehicle from the others: he was not all fun and games. In fact, he was downright funny weird, not funny haha.
So here lies one of the major problems people have with this film: it veers from dark comedy into darkness, period. Carrey isn't making an ass of himself in every scene. No. Instead, Carrey's Chip Douglas is an obsessive, extreme, two-faced sociopath. The result? What would be Jim Carrey's best performance to date, surpassed only by his Truman Burbank in The Truman Show.
Sure, it's got a story that's been done to death: normal guy meets psycho and is stalked. But oh, what fun it is to see Jim drag Matthew Broderick into such uncomfortable situations as playing Porno Password with his parents (Carrey whispering "Nipple" into Broderick's ear is absolute brilliance).
Cable Guy is definitely not for fans who want to see Jim Carrey do what created his career; that is, silly, goofy, and flailing comedy. However, avid fans of black comedies will love seeing Carrey's first step in his evolution as a gifted, serious, and undeniably interesting actor.
8 out of 10.