(out of )Before I saw this film, it had already received plenty of rave reviews in America. Then I found out that it was from the guys who did Dumb & Dumber. I was shocked. Since critics in America didn't like Dumb either, I thought: the filmmakers must have undertaken a completely new approach. They didn't. But this time, it was funny.
Dumb & Dumber was just DUMB (to those who voted for it in the AFI Top 100 Comedies: get out of my sight/site). Mary is funny. Unexpectedly, Mary is more 'sickening' that its predecessor, yet not as stupid. How it got to be so sick was that they took scenes one step further than most other films. They pretty much hit new ground in gross-out comedy. This is definitely a physical comedy, as opposed to a verbal comedy. However, a farce solely dependent on comic sequences is admittedly not going to get much more than 8.0. Despite its absolute hilarity at moments, the film does have its fair share of lameness. The acting is often lame, the dialogue goes off all the time, though direction is mostly passable. Nevertheless, this provides 119 minutes (notice that it is longer than usual) of solid, sometimes grotesque, entertainment.
Lameness in acting could often be attributed to Cameron Diaz. How she ever got a nomination for a Golden Globe I will never know. Sure, she's good to look at, but she overacts a great deal (not for comical reasons), and can't seem to stay still. (Of course, the latter part is not as big a problem.) As expected from light entertainment, none of the performances are especially commendable.
The story begins with Mary (Diaz) and Ted (Stiller) in the last year of senior high, and prom night is looming. Geek Ted earns Knockout Mary's date after a show of kindness. However, they never make it to the prom, with a series of accidents, which I will (definitely) not describe in detail, that occurred at Mary's house. While Psycho prevented us from taking showers, and Jaws put beaches out of business, Mary warns males never to rush after the toilet... Thirteen years later, Ted still cannot forget Mary, and on recommendation he hires a private inspector, Healy (Dillon), to look her up in Miami. The investigator finds her, and falls in love with her. As the negligible plot progresses, we discover that there are a few more people desperately in love with her. What fails towards the end was that it became predictable. Essentially there was not much to laugh at (at least I don't remember any) in the last 15 minutes or so.
Mary has the kind of humour of Mouse Hunt on a level that is both sexual and also full of bodily harm. Lee Evans appears in both these films.
Though not a great film, it's enjoyable enough, but definitely not for the light-hearted.
: Classic
: Highly recommended; Excellent
: Recommended
: Okay; Passable
: Time-Killer
: Ill-advised cure for boredom
: Keep an alarm clock beside you, also usually suitable to end a relationship
: Try to restrain yourself from inflicting pain to anything nearby, including yourself and the screen, on realisation of how much time and money you have wasted
Zero: This is a film?
Welcome any questions, comments, and criticisms to [email protected]
� 1998, 2000 Michael Chen