By Bob Garver<\/p>\n
It has been twenty years since the Jeff Daniels and Jim Carrey first played to the lowest common denominator in \u201cDumb and Dumber.\u201d Though Daniels certainly held his own as one half of the dimwitted duo (as a matter of fact, the film wouldn\u2019t have worked without the excellent chemistry of both actors), the film was often seen as a vehicle for Carrey, who was quickly becoming one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. That star has since dimmed thanks to \u201csafe\u201d roles in movies like \u201cThe Grinch\u201d and \u201cMr. Popper\u2019s Penguins.\u201d Doing a sequel to an earlier hit might seem like another \u201csafe\u201d choice, but there\u2019s nothing safe about the manic energy he and Daniels bring to their roles.<\/p>\n
\u00a0 The plot finds Harry (Daniels) and Lloyd (Carrey) traveling across the country to meet \u201cHarry\u2019s\u201d long-lost daughter Penny (Rachel Melvin) so Harry can hit her up for a kidney. I put Harry\u2019s name in quotes because the mother (Kathleen Turner) was with many men, including Lloyd, who develops an immediate crush on Penny that is already creepy and threatens to get much creepier any second. There\u2019s also a subplot about various villains trying to steal away a billion-dollar invention that Penny\u2019s adoptive scientist father has entrusted with Harry and Lloyd. But the plot doesn\u2019t really matter, just know that Harry and Lloyd are once again going on a road trip where they get to bother a whole lot of people.<\/p>\n
The film plays to the nostalgic nature of the original\u2019s target audience of juveniles, who are now in their late 20s and early 30s (I was eight when the first one came out, and in fact it was the first PG-13-rated movie I saw in theaters). I was waiting for a lot of the callback jokes to bomb, but surprisingly most of them didn\u2019t. I especially liked Lloyd\u2019s revealing of the second most annoying sound in the world. But the fact remains that there are a lot of callback jokes in this film. Newer viewers should watch the first film before watching this one, and even longtime fans might need a refresher. The downside of watching both films close together is that you\u2019re spending a total of about four hours with these characters, and a little bit of them goes a long way.<\/p>\n
What can I say about the humor in this movie? I don\u2019t really need to say anything because everything you need to know is right there in the title. The film is one dumb gag after another. Notice I\u2019m not saying \u201cunfunny\u201d or \u201cineffective,\u201d I\u2019m saying \u201cdumb.\u201d Used correctly, dumb gags can be very funny even for the smartest viewer. As a matter of fact, there is an art to dumb gags that, if mastered, makes the artist very smart. And a lot of the dumb gags in this movie are indeed smartly constructed. But there are even more that are just plain dumb and bad and painful. A lot of them are vulgar too. Directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly are known as purveyors of gross-out humor and this movie sees them sink to some new lows. I\u2019m honestly surprised that the MPAA let this movie slide with a PG-13 rating.<\/p>\n
I will say that, as dumb as they are, \u201cDumb and Dumber To\u201d at least has a lot of gags. Even if you laugh at only one out of ten, there\u2019s still a lot to like. Carrey and Daniels have maintained their chemistry and the comic energy is kept consistent. Even if a particular gag doesn\u2019t work, there\u2019s a strong possibility that the next one will. So by all means, watch this movie. You\u2019ll laugh, you\u2019ll cringe, you\u2019ll laugh, you\u2019ll cringe, you\u2019ll cringe, you\u2019ll cringe, you\u2019ll cringe some more and then you\u2019ll laugh again.<\/p>\n
Two Stars out of Five.<\/p>\n
\u201cDumb and Dumber To\u201d is rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, partial nudity, language and some drug references. Its running time is 110 minutes.<\/p>\n