Peter and Bobby Farrelly, known collectively as the Farrelly brothers, took the comedy world by surprise in 1994, with a small but explosive comedy about a duo of very, very stupid friends: "Dumb and Dumber". Now regarded as one of the best and most influential comedies of the 90s, the movie became an instant hit and put the Farrelly brothers in the map. More than a decade after their successful debut, the Farrelly brothers have kept improving their well-known style of light hearted slapstick comedy, although the toilet humor they used frequently in their earlier movies has become a subtler (although no less outrageous) kind of comedy. "Stuck on You" follows this progression where toilet humor is replaced by some touches of charming drama in the story of a couple of sibling who just happen to be a bit too close from each other.
Bob (Matt Damon) and Walt (Greg Kinnear), a couple of co-jointed twins living Martha's Vineyard where they have a small yet very successful fast food restaurant. While their condition is problematic at times, since they were kids the brothers made themselves the promise to never limit each other, so they have lived their lives to the max. However, Walt has an ambition: to be a Hollywood movie star. Bob knows Walt has the talent, but unlike him, he is more of a small town man, preferring the comfort of his town to the urban environment of L.A., but he has his own reasons to visit Hollywood, as his best friend May (Wen Yann Shih), whom he has met only via Internet, lives there and this may be his only chance to meet the love of his life.
The Farrelly brothers, along with regular collaborators Charles B. Wessler and Bennett Yellin, have crafted a delightful script about the brother's relationship that respectfully deals with the twins' handicap, pretty much in the same way as "Shallow Hal" presented obesity. While their condition is certainly the film's main plot device, it is very important to point out that the source of the jokes is not the brother's handicap itself, but the people's reactions to them, and more importantly, the way they deal with their problems. Unlike most of the Farrelly's earlier movies, the film is very realistic, and never really offensive or exploitative in some way. The script is actually very funny, and with very well constructed characters (the twins' relationship may have been inspired by the directors' own relationship); it is this quality what makes "Stuck on You" to stand out, as the characters are so easy to sympathize with that it's hard to not like them.
As directors, the brothers stay close to their successful formula of highly energetic slapstick, but as written above, the addition of drama to the story gives it a lot more heart than their previous offerings. The fact that, like "Shallow Hal", this comedy is a more character driven story, allows the brothers to showcase their progress as directors of actors and to prove that they is definitely more in their bag of tricks than an assortment of gross out jokes. In fact, the movie shows even less toilet humor than "Shallow Hal", and shows a couple of comedy directors than have finally reached the maturity of their craft. This is not to say that the movie lacks slapstick comedy, as the twins' handicap is often put to test to overcome the many obstacles of their life in Hollywood. However, as I said before, this done in more a championing and positive way than in humiliating or disrespectful way.
Given that the film is entirely focus on the brothers, the actors portraying them have to not only be able to carry the film, they must completely work together as a team to pull off the roles believably. Greg Kinnear and Matt Damon are at first sight an unlikely pair for this kind of comedy, but surprisingly both manage to deliver a delightful performance as the brothers. With an amazing coordination and great talent for comedy, both actors manage to deliver realistic and very touching performances. It's safe to say that Damon is the weakest of the two, but that has more to do with Kinnear's remarkable scene stealing delivery than with any lack of talent in Damon's side. Eva Mendes is really the film's surprise by making a charming performance as April, the brother's enthusiastic neighbor in Hollywood who quickly becomes their best friend during their time in California.
Certainly most fans will miss the gross out toilet humor of the earlier films, but the way the Farrelly brothers manage the subtle mix of comedy and drama of the film is more than enough to make up for that missing element. Often criticized for being exploitative of people's handicaps, with this movie the brothers prove that all that criticism was simply a misunderstanding of the siblings' comedy, as "Stuck on You" is anything but exploitative, and instead offers good insight about the problems that co-jointed twins' (or any other handicapped person for that matter) face when trying yo "fit" in the supposedly "normal society". This is certainly the film with most heart the brothers have ever done, and certainly one of their best. While one can certainly miss the freshness and irreverence of their earlier films, it's safe to say that by following this path the brothers soon will be delivering masterpieces of comedy.
"Stuck on You" was a big surprise for me, as probably like many people, I was expecting bad taste jokes and highly offensive exploitation. It was very refreshing to see that "Stuck on You" was very different than what I was expecting and turned out to be one of the most charming comedies the brothers have directed. With an excellent cast and most of all, a witty and intelligent script, this movie can proudly rank as one of the best comedies of the first decade of the 21st century. 7/10
Bob (Matt Damon) and Walt (Greg Kinnear), a couple of co-jointed twins living Martha's Vineyard where they have a small yet very successful fast food restaurant. While their condition is problematic at times, since they were kids the brothers made themselves the promise to never limit each other, so they have lived their lives to the max. However, Walt has an ambition: to be a Hollywood movie star. Bob knows Walt has the talent, but unlike him, he is more of a small town man, preferring the comfort of his town to the urban environment of L.A., but he has his own reasons to visit Hollywood, as his best friend May (Wen Yann Shih), whom he has met only via Internet, lives there and this may be his only chance to meet the love of his life.
The Farrelly brothers, along with regular collaborators Charles B. Wessler and Bennett Yellin, have crafted a delightful script about the brother's relationship that respectfully deals with the twins' handicap, pretty much in the same way as "Shallow Hal" presented obesity. While their condition is certainly the film's main plot device, it is very important to point out that the source of the jokes is not the brother's handicap itself, but the people's reactions to them, and more importantly, the way they deal with their problems. Unlike most of the Farrelly's earlier movies, the film is very realistic, and never really offensive or exploitative in some way. The script is actually very funny, and with very well constructed characters (the twins' relationship may have been inspired by the directors' own relationship); it is this quality what makes "Stuck on You" to stand out, as the characters are so easy to sympathize with that it's hard to not like them.
As directors, the brothers stay close to their successful formula of highly energetic slapstick, but as written above, the addition of drama to the story gives it a lot more heart than their previous offerings. The fact that, like "Shallow Hal", this comedy is a more character driven story, allows the brothers to showcase their progress as directors of actors and to prove that they is definitely more in their bag of tricks than an assortment of gross out jokes. In fact, the movie shows even less toilet humor than "Shallow Hal", and shows a couple of comedy directors than have finally reached the maturity of their craft. This is not to say that the movie lacks slapstick comedy, as the twins' handicap is often put to test to overcome the many obstacles of their life in Hollywood. However, as I said before, this done in more a championing and positive way than in humiliating or disrespectful way.
Given that the film is entirely focus on the brothers, the actors portraying them have to not only be able to carry the film, they must completely work together as a team to pull off the roles believably. Greg Kinnear and Matt Damon are at first sight an unlikely pair for this kind of comedy, but surprisingly both manage to deliver a delightful performance as the brothers. With an amazing coordination and great talent for comedy, both actors manage to deliver realistic and very touching performances. It's safe to say that Damon is the weakest of the two, but that has more to do with Kinnear's remarkable scene stealing delivery than with any lack of talent in Damon's side. Eva Mendes is really the film's surprise by making a charming performance as April, the brother's enthusiastic neighbor in Hollywood who quickly becomes their best friend during their time in California.
Certainly most fans will miss the gross out toilet humor of the earlier films, but the way the Farrelly brothers manage the subtle mix of comedy and drama of the film is more than enough to make up for that missing element. Often criticized for being exploitative of people's handicaps, with this movie the brothers prove that all that criticism was simply a misunderstanding of the siblings' comedy, as "Stuck on You" is anything but exploitative, and instead offers good insight about the problems that co-jointed twins' (or any other handicapped person for that matter) face when trying yo "fit" in the supposedly "normal society". This is certainly the film with most heart the brothers have ever done, and certainly one of their best. While one can certainly miss the freshness and irreverence of their earlier films, it's safe to say that by following this path the brothers soon will be delivering masterpieces of comedy.
"Stuck on You" was a big surprise for me, as probably like many people, I was expecting bad taste jokes and highly offensive exploitation. It was very refreshing to see that "Stuck on You" was very different than what I was expecting and turned out to be one of the most charming comedies the brothers have directed. With an excellent cast and most of all, a witty and intelligent script, this movie can proudly rank as one of the best comedies of the first decade of the 21st century. 7/10