There's Something About Mary and there's also something about this movie that makes me like it more than most other gross-out comedies

Rating: 8/10 (15 February 2006)

There's Something About Mary is an apt title, for there is something about this movie that is quite endearing, particularly if you are a gross-out fan. Even if you are not a real fan of gross-outs, as is the case with me, you can still enjoy this film. This is because I find it to be funnier and more enjoyable than most other gross-out comedies (and that includes Team America). As a romantic comedy, it is also enjoyable and that is saying something as romantic comedy is, to me, a bastardised version of real comedy, often with a weak romance and diluted laughs. This is certainly not the case here. Having said that, it is not perfect: The Farrelly Brothers use a retard for cheap laughs once too often, which I did not like, the disabled guy wasn't that funny and the plot is a bit clichÃ©d and predictable, but I expected that.
The story is about a man named Ted, who we see meet a beautiful girl, Mary, during his teenage years. However, their budding romance falls away when Ted gets his dick caught in his zipper. By the way, this scene is absolutely hilarious and so is the aftermath, after the police officer tells him to 'pull it out'; next minute, he is being carted off in an ambulance, never to see Mary again...or so we think for a minute.
Until of course, he finds himself fantasising about Mary years later. He hires a private investigator, Pat Healy, to do some snooping on her. This takes a turn for the worse, as the investigator falls in love with Mary and lies to Ted. Ted finds out about his deceiving ways, thanks to Woogy and goes to see Mary himself.
This movie is hilarious at times, funny at others; occasionally, it falls flat. There are too many hilarious and funny scenes to mention here, so I'll mention the best ones: the 'dick zipper' one, the 'fishing line' one and the one where the retard goes psycho and hits Pat Healy in the face. To be impartial, I will say that I have already mentioned some of the imperfect bits above.
The acting is quite good too. Ben Stiller does a good job as the nervy, fantasising, sensible Ted, while Matt Dillon is good as the 'sleazy investigator'. Cameron Diaz, in the days when she was still hot, is OK, but not much more than your typical love interest. The rest of the cast is nothing more than OK, including W. Earl Brown, the guy who plays the retard (as anyone could play his role).
I'll finish by saying that this is one of the best gross-out/romantic comedies I've ever seen and is definitely worth a Friday night or a DVD rental. There is a good chance that you'll be laughing like I did throughout the movie. To clinch this review, I will say that:
There's Something About Mary!
4/5 stars