Why All the Praise For This Movie?!

Rating: Null/10 (27 July 1999)

I am amazed at the number of wonderful reviews this movie has received, some by top and respected critics. Some of these are the same people who have panned other movies, such as Big Daddy, for the same reasons that they claim to like this picture. This sends a very inconsistent message.
There's Something About Mary is filled with obnoxious and officious humor. In fact, it's bathroom humor all the way. Many of the key scenes literally take place in a bathroom! It is very hard to laugh at the way disabled people, dating gentleman, and animals are treated in this film. Not that I demand that every movie I see be politically correct. I enjoy a good laugh as much as anybody else. It's just that much of the supposed humor of this movie did not make me laugh. On the contrary, I was often grossed out and sometimes downright offended. I felt the same way as when I had just been made fun of on the play- ground in elementary and junior high school. Unless you appreciate being made the butt of another person's joke, I don't see how you--the viewer--can enjoy this movie, ultimately.
On top of this, there is no overarching message of positive reinforcement in this movie. This movie hits you in the gut with sick humor and then just leaves you there. The gags that are supposedly so funny are the merciless point of this movie. It might appeal to a bully, but anyone with half a brain to see through this sick mess will feel their intelligence insulted. But that's the point. The movie plays its biggest, most obnoxious joke upon the viewer.
As for Cameron Diaz, if this is the best she can give us, her star isn't anything special. If the point is that this is just an escapist movie not to be taken seriously, then there are other movies, such as Big Daddy or Wayne's World, that convey that message and pull off the same type gags with more grace. Those movies are amusing and worth the money paid to see them. This one isn't.