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DUMB AND DUMBER: UNRATED
Review by Gordon Justesen
Stars:
Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, Lauren Holly, Karen Duffy, Victoria Rowell, Mike
Starr, Charles Rocket, Terri Garr
Directors: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1 EX, DTS ES 6.1
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Studio: New Line Cinema
Features: See Review
Length: 113 Minutes
Release Date: January 3, 2006
“We
got no food, no jobs…OUR PETS' HEADS ARE FALLING OFF!”
Film ***
There are certain movies that you simply can’t help but
love. Even though as a serious film fanatic, you may get into some level of
trouble for admitting that you like a certain film. Lord knows I have an endless
list of guilty pleasures, and Dumb and
Dumber is certainly high on that list.
Looking back, this brain-dead-and-proud-to-be actually came
out at the best possible time. 1994 was a red hot year for Jim Carrey, who after
two monster hits, Ace Ventura and The
Mask, ended the year with what was then his biggest hit yet at the box
office. Dumb and Dumber was indeed the film to solidify Carrey as the new
king of cinematic comedy. It is also one of Carrey’s funniest films to date.
It was also the first taste audiences got from writing and
directing team of Peter and Bobby Farrelly, who took dumb comedy to new heights
and pushed the envelope whenever it needed pushing. The Farrelly’s do more
than deliver on extreme sight gags and dumb humor. They set up a laugh
brilliantly; having you think a joke will go one way only to surprise with the
punchline, a style that resonates through this movie.
The story involves dimwitted friends for life Lloyd
Christmas (Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Jeff Daniels). They live together and each
lead extremely dead-end lives. Then one day Lloyd, who’s a limo driver, falls
head over heels in love with Mary (Lauren Holly), a woman he transports to the
airport. After seeing that she inexplicably leaves a briefcase in the middle of
the terminal, Lloyd rushes to get it to her but is too late, as the plane has
already taken off and he has taken a hard fall to the runway.
Then Lloyd gets an idea, for one. To convince Harry to take
a road trip to Aspen where the woman said she was flying to, and return the
briefcase to her. He’s hoping that this generous act will help in wooing the
girl. And thus, the movie begins as our two heroes hit the road.
What follows is essentially a series of riotously funny
sight gags involving Lloyd and Harry’s run in with assorted characters. The
most memorable of which is a moment when the two get pulled over by a traffic
cop, who thinks they have been enjoying some of “grandpa’s old cough
medicine” while driving. There are indeed beer bottles in the vehicle, only
the happen to be empty bottles that Lloyd has just relieved himself in. The cop
decides to taste test one for himself, resulting in one of the most howling
funny facial gestures I’ve ever seen.
There’s even a twist to the plot about the briefcase. It
turns out that Mary was making a ransom drop at the airport for a pair of
kidnappers. Lloyd and Harry have unknowingly foiled that plot, leaving the
criminals to think that they’re nothing short of pure professionals. The thugs
strike back by fatally assaulting their pet parakeet, a moment which will later
payoff as one of the funniest sight gags in the history of cinematic comedy. No
matter how many times I see this movie, it will never lose its laugh factor.
Dumb and Dumber
is simply one of those movies that must be revisited every few years. More than
a decade down the road, it is still funny as hell. It is a career highpoint for
Jim Carrey, as well as an important feat for the Farrelly Brothers, who would
later deliver even more brilliant zaniness in There’s Something About Mary, Me, Myself & Irene, and their
most hilarious offering to date, the bowling comedy Kingpin.
Check your brain at the door and enjoy!
Video ****
I never caught its initial DVD release, but New Line has delivered the visual goods with this outstanding anamorphic presentation. Image clarity is complete throughout, and colors are given a very nice touch, as well. No image flaws detected at all.
Audio ***1/2
The sound gets a tremendous boost, thanks to a 5.1 EX and a
6.1 DTS ES sound mix. Though mainly a dialogue-driven comedy, the sound works on
as many areas as possible, including frequent music playback, extremely clear
dialogue delivery and numerous set pieces, providing some nice surround sound
effects.
Features ***
This new Platinum Series/Unrated edition includes 6 minutes of newly added footage, as well as Deleted Scenes, Alternate Endings, a new Retrospective Documentary and Theatrical Trailers.
Summary: