MOVIE REVIEW: DUMB AND DUMBER TO / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: BOBBY FARRELLY, PETER FARRELLY / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: JIM CARREY, JEFF DANIELS, KATHLEEN TURNER, LAURIE HOLDEN, RACHEL MELVIN / RELEASE DATE: DECEMBER 19TH
It’s been 20 years since Dumb and Dumber made an international star out of Jim Carrey, showed everyone Jeff Daniels could do comedy, and launched the careers of the Farrelly brothers. Since then the film has rightfully become a cult classic and spawned a disappointing prequel. So what have Harry (Daniels) and Lloyd (Carrey) been up to? Not much, apparently.
As shown in the film’s trailer, Lloyd has been in a mental institution since a failed romance from the first film. Despite being completely unresponsive, Harry visits him every week to talk to him and change his nappies, only to discover it’s all been a prank. Lloyd returns home with Harry, who tells him that he needs a kidney transplant. They visit Harry’s parents to ask for a kidney but find out that he’s adopted. Harry also finds out he has a child by former girlfriend Fraida Felcher (Turner).
They set off to find Fraida, who says she gave up the child, a girl called Fanny (Melvin), for adoption. Spurred on by Lloyd, who falls in love with Fanny after seeing her picture, Harry decides to track her down and a road trip begins.
Elements of the plot are largely the same – the road trip, Lloyd’s secret agenda, and a bad guy joining them en-route – but it doesn’t work as well. As you’d expect from the Farrellys, there is a lot of gross-out comedy, mostly involving Harry and Lloyd’s anal regions. While some of the gags work (“addicted to crack”), many fall flat, especially outdated racial jokes. As a result, the film is inconsistent – it starts well then lulls for a bit, finally getting better only to dip again.
There are some modern references, such as Breaking Bad (featuring a well hidden cameo) and a soundtrack by Empire of the Sun (sorry Primitives), to appeal to younger audiences who were probably too young for the first film. There are also some welcome cameos from the first film to please original audiences. Carrey and Daniels, now in their fifties, give it their all, but the intelligent jokes from the first film are missing and so is the charm. A disappointing return for Harry and Lloyd.
Expected Rating: 6 out of 10
Actual Rating:
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