The Cable guy [DVD]

After being dumped by girlfriend Robin (Leslie Mann), Steven Kovacs (Matthew Broderick) moves house and into his life enters Cable Guy Chip Douglas (Jim Carrey); a dry, wise cracking tradesman with a speech impediment who is keen to pursue a relationship that goes beyond that of client and service provider. Their outings initially consist of a trip to the cable satellite but progresses to dinner dates and (stolen) gifts. After a frightening basketball game in which Chip replaces one of their players, Steven sees the dark undertones emerging in Chip and begins to fear the intensity of the friendship. When he starts interfering with his relationship to Robin (including beating up one of her dates in a bathroom), Steven wants out, but the entertainment and technology savvy Douglas is proving hard to shake. Jim Carrey throws himself into the role of the Cable Guy, at times hilarious, but always verging on malevolent; as a consequence, the black humour reflects the film’s ambivalent exploration of the genre and content matter, thus giving it a comedy/thriller tag. Director Stiller features in a sub plot played out on the television screen of a former child star accused of killing his twin. Cameos by: Andy Dick, Janeane Garafalo, Kathy Griffin, Eric Roberts, Owen Wilson.