He can be over the top silly if he wants or he can just be downright serious but still funny. Carey is considered one of the big 5 comedians still around: Robin Williams, Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy, Mike Meyers and himself. The only problem with most of those comedians is they either lost their comedic touch, went to serious films or went straight to kids movies. Williams has made a pretty decent comeback and so has Sandler but Myers and Murphy are DOA. Carey though had it rough for a while. He did strictly serious movies like the number 23 or Eternal Sunshine...but in December of 08 he returned to his comic roots. This was either gonna be a make it or break it for him, returning to comedy. Would he still be funny or would he go under? Well the good news is thanks to a great cast, great plot and Carey being himself for once, this proves to be the movie that he needed!