The Farrelly Bros. (Dumb & Dumber, There’s Something About Mary) have shown to be interested in making only one type of film. They specialize in balls-to-the-wall (often literally) comedies with politically incorrect and crude humor. They know what makes them laugh and they have stuck to the formula and genre that made them successful, without deviation. Their singularity in vision makes their films the ultimate in divisive film-making. Either you love their movies or you don’t even understand how they can exist.
Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels return in the roles that they made famous twenty years ago and the age does show unfortunately. However, the Farrelly Bros. tackle the passage of time head on, by having a self-awareness to the movie that is typical of modern-day sequels such as, 22 Jump Street.
The story revolves around the idiotic duo (I mean that in the most loving of ways), on another cross-country trek. This time they are in search of Harry Dunne’s (Daniels) daughter that he never knew that he had. Dunne is in need of a kidney transplant so he enlists his old pal Lloyd Christmas to help track her down. Along the way they get into some of the dumbest scenarios that you can imagine.
Dumb and Dumber To brings back many of the situations and jokes that made the first movie so successful. The movie is often at its funniest when the Farrelly Bros include their trademark dream sequences and montages. It is interesting that in each of Harry and Lloyd’s dreams, they see each other as the villain in their own lives. This actually carries over into most of the movie, where they are often cruel and mean-spirited towards each other. It becomes a little more uncomfortable this time around, perhaps because in the first movie they seemed oblivious to the pain that they circumstantially caused each other. It seems that every comedic jab that they throw at each other hits on a much more emotional level this time around, that isn’t quite as funny.
That’s not to say the movie is devoid of humor. In typical Farrelly Bros. style, the joke-to-minute ratio is off the charts and you would truly have to be comatose to sit through the movie without at least a few chuckles. It is fun spending time with the comedic duo again, even if they overstay their welcome a little bit, with a running time that is close to two hours.
Dumb and Dumber To may also suffer from being a little past its prime. The Farrelly Bros. found a huge amount of success in the 1990’s, but they haven’t had a big hit arguably since they teamed up with Carrey in 2000’s Me, Myself, & Irene. While they have come out with a new film every few years, they have failed to catch on with current audiences. The overall quality of their recent output hasn’t been high and it may be that audience’s have caught on to their brand of comedy, that may be simply outdated by today’s standards.
The film rides on the back of Carrey’s performance. You can tell that he is giving it his all, yet it is a little underwhelming because it feels like he trying to recapture something that he has grown beyond. Some of that has to due with Carrey’s age, but more of it has to do with Harry and Lloyd themselves. These two are almost cartoon-like, because they have an inability to grow, mature, or have character development. In the movie, Harry asks Lloyd why he played a trick on him for twenty years instead of ten years. Lloyd responds, “Because it would be funnier that way.” The meta comment is meant to break the fourth wall, by commenting on their own return in the sequel. However, it simply isn’t funnier that way…
Fans of the franchise and lover’s of nostalgia should certainly check the movie out to scratch the twenty year itch. It is probably exactly what you are expecting. The movie does feel a little episodic and at times it feels like a familiar TV show. Does that make it a good movie, worthy of a blanket recommendation? Not quite, but it is a silly time that slightly overstays its welcome. Yes its dumb…but that is exactly what you should be expecting…
5 Out of 10 P.O.G.’s
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FUN FACT: The guy who plays Ice Pick is the one and only Bill Murray!