Jim Carrey flexes his phenomenal acting chops as Jeff Piccirillo, or Jeff Pickles, in Showtime’s new show Kidding.
For 30 years, Pickles has been the man behind a beloved children’s show turned multi-million dollar franchise acting as a beacon of kindness and wisdom to the America’s young minds.
“We’re really reminding people that we’re all innocent. We still have it. We haven’t lost it. No ‘Trump’ can take it away from us,” Carrey said of the show.
At first glance it may seem as though Pickles is just an emulation of Mr. Rogers, but beneath the surface is a broken man dealing with the death of his son, Phil.
Jeff and his wife Jill (Judy Greer) are separated, and his other son, Will (Cole Allen), runs with the wrong crowd and is occasionally seen smoking marijuana.
Will and Phil are twins, and the writers have done an excellent job exploring the impact Phil’s death has on Will.
As he is forced to watch his family break at the seam, Jeff looks for a way to cope with his feelings. He discovers that nothing he can do, or say, can alleviate his psychological pain.
The result is a kind man slowly losing his sanity, which is as hilarious as it is heartbreaking.
“He [Pickles] just goes the whole gamut from absolute desperation, and anger, and loss to just pure joy, and fun, and light-heartedness,” Carrey said.
This is evidenced when Jeff buys the house next door to his wife and son. As he approaches the window above his kitchen sink, he sees Jill washing dishes. We see him smile when Will walks by. The camera jumps behind him, and although Jeff faces away from the camera, we can see and feel the life drain from his body when he sees a new man hug and kiss her.
In that moment the audience knows the very thing Jeff needs to get through the death of Phil is out of his reach. What is worse is that there is nothing he can do about it.
In his anger he rips the faucet off the sink and throws it to the ground.
By presenting the encounter this way, the director shows that while Jeff is mere feet away from his family, he might as well be on a different planet.
Kidding expertly shows the divide between Pickles the icon, and Jeff the man.
However, as the show nears the conclusion of its first season, the line between them has become blurred.
The first episode starts on the set of the late show Conan, on which Pickles sings to the nation with his puppet/ukulele Uku-larry, one of the many puppets on his show “Mr. Pickles’ Puppet Time”.
“It’s you who’s doing the feeling, and that makes it ok. And if you don’t know who you are yet, you can feel it anyway.”
Later in the episode, he talks with his producer, and father, Seb Piccirillo (Frank Langella) about doing a show about death. Seb instead wants to do a show about colors and subliminally making purple the color for Father’s Day, as Hallmark requested of the show.
Jeff doesn’t back down.
“Kids know the sky is blue,” Jeff argues. “They need to know what to do when it’s falling.”
The imagery and metaphorical language used by Jeff mixed with Carrey’s sincere performance makes the character feel real.
Throughout the series a few fans meet Jeff. These interactions show just how much of an impact he had on their lives.
When a man on death row writes to Jeff asking him to be there when he is put to death, he obliges against the wishes of his producer. Jeff takes the man’s wife and son to dinner with his family. He even gives the son a job on the show.
One scene in particular showcases the attention to detail and creativity in the show.
The scene, which clocks in at about one minute and 40 seconds, is a long and complicated single take. Guest star Riki Lindhome plays Shaina, a woman who is inspired to turn her life around after watching an episode of “Mr. Pickles’ Puppet Time.”
In one take, viewers see Shaina renovate her apartment, exercise, and celebrate her new life with friends.
“We spent an entire Saturday choreographing [this] one shot,” said Creator and Executive Producer David Holestein. “It involved 50 crew members, a special built set with walls that flipped, and it’s just this continuous shot of a woman over five years going from drug addict to better person.”
A video uploaded by the network shows a side-by-side of shooting the sequence and the scene itself. It is truly incredible to watch and changes how you view the show.
A masterful performance by Carrey, excellent set design, and brilliant writing all make this show a must watch.
One moment you will laugh, the next cry and then feel inspired to be a better person.
Kidding airs Sundays at nine p.m. on Showtime, or it can be seen on Showtime’s streaming service.
