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Politics

Greg Gutfeld: "Jim Carrey Has Killed More People Than All the Rifles Combined"

Nick Gillespie | 3.26.2013 12:09 PM

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On yesterday's Fox News Channel show The Five, Greg Gutfeld tore into comedian Jim Carrey, whose Funny or Die parody song "Cold Dead Hand" mocks gun owners, Charlton Heston, and, improbably, that bastion of cultural evil, Hee-Haw.

Gutfeld, who also hosts Fox News' Red Eye, is enagingly foaming at the mouth throughout his anti-Carrey rant. Snippets courtesy of Mediaite:

[Jim Carrey is "the most pathetic tool on the face of the earth…I hope his career is dead and he ends up sleeping in a car the way his life began. This video made me want to go out and buy a gun…."

Gutfeld notes that the late Charlton Heston was one of the first Hollywood celebrities to publicly endorse the civil rights movement in the 1950s and '60s, while Carrey was for a time active in then-girlfriend Jenny McCarthy's anti-vaccination efforts. Noting that the World Health Organization estimates about 160,000 people die each year from measles, Gutfeld explodes, "Jim Carrey has killed more people than all the rifles combined."

It's a great performance by Gutfeld (if loose and fast with facts) and well worth watching by clicking above. His Twitter feed is also pretty damn awesome on the topic. You can check it out here.

I like a lot of Jim Carrey's movies, his run on In Living Color, and various oddball antics over the years, but "Cold Dead Hand" really is crap on toast. It exemplifies coastal contempt for the provinces in a way that is so leaden and conventional - Hee-Haw? Charlton Heston? - it's hard to believe this is the same guy who was once not simply funny but pretty damn dazzling. Lord knows there are plenty of funny ways to lampoon gun-rights enthusiasts, but reaching for the most obvious gags (and thereby reinforcing the existing beliefs on both sides of the issue) is not the way to do that.

Watch the vid below and let us know what you think in the comments secton.

Cold Dead Hand with Jim Carrey from Jim Carrey

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Nick Gillespie is an editor at large at Reason and host of The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie.

PoliticsGunsNanny StateCultureCivil LibertiesPolicy2nd AmendmentMovies
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  1. Night Elf Mohawk   12 years ago

    Can someone link to an example of Carrey being funny? An elastic face doesn't count.

    1. Tulpa (LAOL-PA)   12 years ago

      Funniest movie scene EVAR.

      1. $park?   12 years ago

        This scene is soooo much better.

        1. heller   12 years ago

          We need to ban spears.

        2. heller   12 years ago

          Also

          http://youtu.be/lut9QPNAPhU?t=1m23s

    2. Knoss   12 years ago

      he can make you laugh with just the flailing of his arms. Lisa Simpson

    3. Greg   12 years ago

      "Hit me again Ike, and put some stank on it!!!" made me laugh

  2. albo   12 years ago

    And he's in the sequel to Kick Ass. Which was one of the most violent, nasty, amoral (but fun) films of the past few years. So it should be just as violent and nasty.

    I'm sure he believes that his satire video sends a positive message about the evil of guns, but that his film certainly won't send a negative message to viewers that you should solve your problems with violence and guns.

    1. Paul.   12 years ago

      They're gonna sequel Kick Ass? Man, that movie was perfectly violent, nasty and amoral and fun, by itself.

      1. Greg   12 years ago

        I believe the subtitle is "Balls to the Wall", unless they've changed it

  3. Warty   12 years ago

    I'm amazed at how bad Jim Carrey's little song is. It's on the level of dipshit frat boys dressing up in blackface for a ghetto-themed party.

    1. anon   12 years ago

      So pretty much modern "comedy?"

      1. generic Brand   12 years ago

        Except the blackface is condemned as racist and Jim Carrey is held up as courageous.

    2. Free Society   12 years ago

      I've gone as Al Jolson for Halloween once. Nothing wrong with that, unless you are easily offended. But to take offense is your choice, not mine or anyone else's.

  4. Warty   12 years ago

    Here, country music that's not smug shit..

    1. Virginian   12 years ago

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG8x4NWfY18

      1. mr simple   12 years ago

        Reid Wilson

        Ronnie Hymes

    2. darius404   12 years ago

      Now THAT'S country. It's not whiny shit that sounds like a cat yowling either.

  5. CE   12 years ago

    Well, he was in Dumb and Dumber, after all.

    1. Rufus J. Firefly   12 years ago

      Hey. Leave Lloyd Christmas out of this.

      Well. Carrey IS Canadians and gun-control is pretty much ingrained into our mindset so no suprise he easily merges into the Northeastern/West Coast generalizations of the South.

      The thing is, that video is sooooo bad and offensive. Anyone sitting on the fence on the issue can ask, "these are the dipshits pushing gun-control? Fuck that. Where do I buy one?"

      As for McCarthy's autism campaign, her musings are quackery. The fear of vaccines is irrational and correlating it to autism is specious at the moment.

      1. Tulpa (LAOL-PA)   12 years ago

        Alex Trebek is Canadian too, and you don't see him doing gun control videos.

        1. Bones   12 years ago

          Alex Trebek is orders of magnitude smarter than Jim Carrey.

          1. Rufus J. Firefly   12 years ago

            Why settle on Trebek? Why not, say, Eddie Lebec?

            Meh.

            Many, many people in Hollywood are Canadian. How long before James Cameron chimes in?

      2. Red Rocks Rockin   12 years ago

        I can't remember who it was--I think it was Denis Leary--that basically said the only reason Jenny McCarthy got on her anti-vaccine kick is because she was too fucking arrogant to consider that she could have birthed a less-than-perfect child.

  6. The Late P Brooks   12 years ago

    the same guy who was once not simply funny but pretty damn dazzling.

    Whoa, whoa, whoa.

    Talk about taking the bit in your teeth...

  7. Death Rock and Skull   12 years ago

    Carrey certainly killed himself on the screen, and his leap on to the satellite dish was symbolic of that.

  8. califernian   12 years ago

    if it's from "funny or die" you can be sure of one thing, it's just not that funny.

    They save their good material for when they get paid, I think.

    1. heller   12 years ago

      Funny or Die should just change their name to Die already.

  9. B.P.   12 years ago

    Ugh. So Carrey chose the "Die" option.

  10. OldMexican   12 years ago

    "Cold Dead Hand" really is crap on toast. It exemplifies coastal contempt for the provinces[.]

    Leave that aside for a moment, and consider what Carrey and people of his ilk believe: That gun owners are:

    a) all concentrated in the provinces, or
    b) that they're no better than simple country-folk.

    This obvious display of holier-than-thou histrionics is not only meant to ridicule the target audience that he's trying to convince on the error of their ways (the very most stupid way to convince people: insult your audience); it also has the clear veneer of progressive thinking that gets you back into the Hollywood parties' lists of invitees. In other words, Carrey displays the pettiness of a person that compares himself to lesser mortals as a way to boost his esteem from himself and his peers. That makes him no different than the jocks kicking the backside of the smart nerds or the mean girl groups in high school. It is juvenile and immature behavior.

    Lord knows there are plenty of funny ways to lampoon gun-rights enthusiasts,

    Just like there must be plenty of funny ways to lampoon speech-rughts enthusiasts, or property-rights enthusiasts, or life-rights enthusiast, or liberty-rights enthusiasts, or...

    But that does not mean the lampooning is ethically warranted or justified. It would only speak volumes about the lack of philosophical or moral foundation suffered by the lampooner.

    1. Rufus J. Firefly   12 years ago

      But it's comedy! I love all these right-wing trolls criticizing humor! Truth hurts, huh?

      Signed Liberal Lilly.

      Apparently, you can cynically make an overtly politically motivated video while not having to face criticism.

      I don't get this liberal tactic.

      1. heller   12 years ago

        Jon Stewart is just a comedian! (Except when he wants to be taken seriously).

    2. VG Zaytsev   12 years ago

      I sure that Nick finds parodies of Same Sex marriage proponents funny as hell.

  11. Joe M   12 years ago

    This reminds of what Matt Stone and Trey Parker said once upon a time: "We hate conservatives, but we really fucking hate liberals."

    1. TayF3rd   12 years ago

      Actually the quote was: "We hate liberals even more than we hate conservatives, and we really hate conservatives!"

  12. Counterfly   12 years ago

    Are we 100% sure that this isn't actually a parody of anti-gun people?

  13. Caleb Turberville   12 years ago

    I liked Dumb and Dumber and The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and I haven't seen I Love You Phillip Morris yet but I was hoping it would be good. That being said, Jim Carrey hasn't been well-regarded since 1997 and he's a washed-up vaccination denier.

    1. Trespassers W   12 years ago

      The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

      I don't understand the love for that movie at all, even on an abstract level.

      But for comedy, Dumb and Dumber is perhaps second only to The Jerk.

      1. Tulpa (LAOL-PA)   12 years ago

        ESOTSM is a Rohrshach test. You have to have the right mindset going in to it to like it.

        1. Trespassers W   12 years ago

          Meh. OK. That's the first decent reason I've heard, even if it's only a meta-reason.

  14. Warty   12 years ago

    Wasn't he in The Truman Show? I remember thinking that one was good.

    1. Caleb Turberville   12 years ago

      It was good, but people didn't like it because it wasn't Liar Liar (his worst movie, by the way). He's actually got a lot more potential as a dramatic actor than as a comedic one (which he topped out with Dumb and Dumber).

      1. Tulpa (LAOL-PA)   12 years ago

        I thought Dumb and Dumber was a parody of Congress, with the suitcase full of IOUs and all.

        1. Caleb Turberville   12 years ago

          Wow.

      2. Paul.   12 years ago

        Liar Liar was not his worst film (definitely not his best), but it did have one of the funniest lines in cinema history.

        But yes, Carrey is definitely strong as a dramatic actor. Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was one of his best.

        1. Caleb Turberville   12 years ago

          Liar Liar was not his worst film (definitely not his best), but it did have one of the funniest lines in cinema history.

          ?

          1. Paul.   12 years ago

            Oh, the one scene where is secretary is quitting, she relays to him a story about her best friend (I'm not quoting it exactly 'cause I'm too lazy to look it up) said that she was sued by a burglar for $6,000 due to an injury he received while breaking into her home. "Do you call that justice?", the secretary asked Carrey.

            Carrey responds, "No! I'd have got him nine!"

            1. Red Rocks Rockin   12 years ago

              Liar Liar wasn't a good movie, but it has some great lines.

              "What are the kids here for?"
              "Sympathy"
              "Well, it's working--I feel sorry for them already."

        2. Proprietist   12 years ago

          The Truman Show and Sunshine of the Spotless Mind were two of his less cornball movies and both were great. Can't stand most of the rest of his repertoire.

        3. Tulpa (LAOL-PA)   12 years ago

          Truman Show, The Majestic, and ESOTSM were more dramedy than drama. Carrey's never done well in a dead serious film.

        4. Bones   12 years ago

          The goddamn pen is bluuuuuuue!!!!

          (I was young therefore it's still funny to me.)

      3. heller   12 years ago

        So the one with the Penguins (I think it was called Fuck You! It's January) wasn't his worst?

  15. Proprietist   12 years ago

    Here's a better and funnier song about Charlton Heston from one of the most WTF bands of the 1980s.

  16. Anonymous Coward   12 years ago

    Brave man, this Jim Carrey, picking a fight with a corpse.

  17. Anomalous   12 years ago

    In Ace Ventura, he talked out of his ass. Now his life imitates his art.

  18. Scotch Man   12 years ago

    I'm ok with the idea that Jim Carrey (who I hadn't heard of since The Cable Guy) is anti-guns. I'm anti-guns. I don't have a weapon and I'm not sure I ever will. But I'm not going to use my own personal stance to tell someone how they should or should not defend their property. If you want a bazooka to do such, I say go for it.

    What offended me is that this wasn't even funny. It was just stupid. I don't need to agree with the message to appreciate the art but this was the dumbest attempt at social commentary and humor I have seen in years. So go back to being insignificant Mr. Carrey.

    1. Drake   12 years ago

      If you were as enlightened as an actor, you would know that your ideas are worth imposing on others.

  19. AlmightyJB   12 years ago

    I don't care about this.

  20. mr simple   12 years ago

    I wonder if Carrey regrets the talking out of his ass scene in Ace Ventura as it gives people something to go to whenever he talks out of his ass on a topic like this.

  21. Gladstone   12 years ago

    and thereby reinforcing the existing beliefs on both sides of the issue

    What's wrong with reinforcing the existing beliefs of the gun rights supporters?

    Lord knows there are plenty of funny ways to lampoon gun-rights enthusiasts

    There are plenty of ways to lampoon libertarians and pot advocates but I doubt you would say something similar.

    1. Gladstone   12 years ago

      Of course Gillespie is the fellow who said the Nazis weren't gungrabbers since they only disarmed the Jews who they you know ended up trying to kill.

      1. Trespassers W   12 years ago

        Citation requested.

        1. Gladstone   12 years ago

          Hitler and the Nazis didn't take away everyone's guns, as is commonly argued. They expanded gun rights for many groups (though not the Jews).

          http://reason.com/archives/201.....sandy-hook

          1. Trespassers W   12 years ago

            To state the bleeding obvious: "Hitler and the Nazis didn't take away everyone's guns, as is commonly argued" doesn't mean the same thing as "Nazis weren't gungrabbers since they only disarmed the Jews".

            Unless you dispute Nick's claim, apparently the Nazis were gungrabbers, but our current political masters are even worse than Nazis in this regard.

            "Chuck Schumer: worse than a Nazi." That sounds about right.

            1. Gladstone   12 years ago

              Who specifically claimed that the Nazis took away "everyone's" guns? Hitler also expanded civil rights for many groups too in a way.

              This is also the article were he dismisses guerilla warfare and seems to approve of the "2nd Amendment means muskets" line and

              1. Gladstone   12 years ago

                and is desparate to not be seen as a "gun nut."

            2. Gladstone   12 years ago

              Also that line of reasoning is sort of saying that the Communists didn't take away everyone's private property because they let the leaders own property and allowed the peasants to own some land.

  22. The Grinch   12 years ago

    Carrey's best movie was Kingpin, the best part of which was him not being in it. Seriously, fuck him.

  23. CapitalistRunningDog   12 years ago

    Wow, Carrey pats himself on the back in the video for his "biting social satire". I just do not know what to say to that.

    1. Trespassers W   12 years ago

      Hey, comedy's all pretty much the same. If you're good at talking asses, you can probably do biting social satire just as well. THUS SPOKE JIM CARREY'S BRAIN.

  24. Knoss   12 years ago

    "Only the Devil's true devotees could profiteer for pain and fear." Isn't that what Jim Carey is doing?

  25. Tejicano   12 years ago

    If the left had to discard its unwavering idea about gun owners as being simple-minded, right-wing, Neanderthals I think the rest of their world view might begin to unravel.

    Honestly, screw them. I realize that taking up the responsibility for defending oneself and one's loved ones is difficult but it is a facet of the real world we inhabit and must be faced. I also realize that while the probability that I might need a weapon for self-defense may be low any truly rational adult knows the probability is not zero. Merely abdicating this responsibility to be part of the crowd sounds both foolish and cowardly to me.

    If there is any class of people who would be better fit to classify as simple minded and uneducated wouldn't that be the mass of pretty faces paraded before us by Hollywood? Simply listening to them about anything serious should be seen as the mark of a fool.

  26. Suthenboy   12 years ago

    I havent been able to keep up with all the discussions here lately. It has been planting season and some other tasks have taken most of my time, so going back and fucking a dead thread will probably get me some justified criticism......that is fine, I will take it with a smile.

    What the fuck is wrong with some of you people? You are intellectually sophisticated enough to see the merits of liberty, courageous enough to speak out about it, and most of you are smart enough to make really clever jokes. Humor is the highest form of intelligence......yet....somehow....some of you seem to think...and I hesitate to use the word think....that Jim Carrey....Jim Carrey...is....funny?

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