Dumb and Dumber To (2014)
Directed by: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly
Written by: Bennett Yellin, Bobby Farrelly, John Morris, Mike Cerrone, Peter Farrelly, Sean Anders
Starring: Jeff Daniels, Jim Carrey, Laurie Holden, Rachel Melvin, Rob Riggle
The Film Trailer…
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGXHVlEklgQ[/youtube]
What is it all about……
Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels return to their roles of Lloyd and Harry. In need of a new kidney and having learned that he has a long-lost daughter, dimwits Harry Dunne and Lloyd Christmas go on a journey to find her. The witless wonders criss-cross the country using whatever mode of transportation they can find, ultimately arriving at the one place on Earth where they least belong: a summit of the world’s most brilliant minds.
The Hughes Verdict
And so we come to the second sequel of this dumb comedy franchise…
Yes, following on from the quite awful Dumb and Dumberer, which was only worth watching thanks to a brilliant Jim Carrey impression by Eric Christian Olsen, we now return to the lives of Harry and Lloyd, only this time the original stars have decided to return to their roles after a twenty year gap, for either a much excited return or simply for a cheap cash in.
After watching this diabolical film, I suggest its the latter.
Simply put, Dumb and Dumber To is quite possibly not just the worst comedy of the year, but a contender for even worst film of 2014. That’s how bad it is, a film so lacking in any fresh jokes or even a decent storyline that I sat there with my mouth open just watching the car crash unfold. Many sequels turn out to be inferior to their original’s, but bad sequels are the ones that even hinder the memory of what you loved in the first place. I mean I can’t watch Basic Instinct any more because all I see is now is Catherine Tramell, having dodgy car sex with Stan Collymore and do not get me started with Highlander 2, a follow up itself that makes a mockery of its own “There can only be one!”.
Dumb and Dumber To sucks all the love you have for these two characters as they do not come across as a pair of innocent dumb guys any more, but of two people who are not very likeable, with quite a mean streak and dare I say it, especially with Lloyd….a little bit creepy.
Plot wise we start with the bit from the trailer. Lloyd (Carrey) has been virtually in a coma like state for the last twenty years after Mary Swanson decided she did not want to be with him. Harry (Daniels) the always devoted friend, has visited him every day, fed him, changed his nappy and done everything possible to bring him back to some sort of life. Of course if you have seen the trailer, then its no spoiler as Lloyd, the non stop practical joker has been lying to him. Cue a sort of running joke through out that is not very clever and at times will leave you on the verge of walking out of the cinema because of the stupidity,
So once you move away from that trailer part, we discover that Harry needs a Kidney transplant and just happens to discover he has a long lost daughter Penny (Rachel Melvin). Hence yet another road trip, where despite maybe a storyline with a bit of heart to it, what we have offered to us is Lloyd tagging along simply because he want’s to have sex with her. Really???? Jim you not a young actor any more and the daughter is like 18.
Ever since the likes of Superbad, Knocked Up and basically the emergence of Judd Apatow, the comedy blueprint that the Farrelly brothers brought to the big screen with so much success in the 90’s seems old hat now. There is still a market out there, just look at the brilliant Step Brothers, but the Farrelly’s here seem determined to fill each gag with a dark vibe, to show the world that they still have that cutting instincts. But sadly they get it all wrong.
One of the memorable gags of the original was the Billy the “Blind kid” moment and here, Brady Bluhm reprises the role, much older of course. Its right after the credits roll and its from here, you sense a change in tone to what we were expecting. Gone are the dumb loveable traits from the two, and in its place, is this vulgar, bullying vibe that carries on throughout. Maybe I am getting old, but being nasty to a blind person is not funny and there are moments when you can’t help but think otherwise.
And it follows through out. These two are no longer Dumb and Dumber but Selfish and Selfisher (not a word I know). Even with this new outlook, you hope that the jokes sort of keep the whole show running, but fart gags and human excrement are littered around and when we see a joke that Only Fools And Horses done much better way back in 1996, then you know the film is in trouble.
There are minor moments to mention. Kathleen Turner lights up every scene with that husky voice of hers and there is a quite brilliant unexpected death that had me go “Whoa!”…..only for that to then be ruined a few minutes later. There are a few little chuckles to be had, if you really force yourself but overall you may end up wondering how it took them twenty years to get something so wrong.
You know us at HCF try not to jump on the bandwagon of either praise or hate. Some of our reviews have caused a stir simply because we have gone against the overall feeling of some films out there. Dumb and Dumber To arrives at these shores with a massive negative critical response and even I sat down thinking that it can’t be that bad! But sadly it is. If you a huge fan of the original and like me all those years ago sat down in your seat and cried with laughter, then all you feel watching this is sadness. For reasons being that you are now 20 years older, how old Jim Carrey is now beginning to look and just how bad they turned two memorable characters into bland has been’s.
If you want to know how bad this is…..I leave you with this. It makes you want to chuck on Dumb and Dumberer and appreciate what Olsen and Derek Richardson done in their attempt at the roles.
That is how bad this is……
Rating: 
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