when i saw the trailer for this film , i laughed harder than i had in quite some time . 
while i was therefore pretty well psyched to see it , i was ever mindful that a trailer can make even the most mediocre film look good . 
i'm happy to say that there's something about mary is not one of those trailer let-downs . 
in fact , watching this film was quite a fine way to spend two hours . 
the film opens up in flashback to 1985 , at a high school in cumberland , rhode island . 
ted stroehmann ( ben stiller ) is a social reject who can't seem to get a date to the upcoming prom , until he comes to the defense of the mentally retarded warren ( w . 
earl brown ) , who's being harassed by one of the school jocks . 
it seems warren's sister is the campus queen , mary jensen ( cameron diaz ) , who is impressed with ted's willingness to stand up for her defenseless brother , despite a very real chance of getting beaten up . 
mary takes an immediate liking to ted and asks him to the prom . 
ted was just flattered that she even knew his name . 
unfortunately , prom night is ruined when ted has an accident with his zipper ( at which every man in the theater will wince ) , and is sent to the hospital . 
fast forward to the present , where ted has cleaned himself up , now writes for a magazine , but has weekly therapy sessions in order to deal with his obsession of the past 13 years : mary , whom he hasn't seen since that fateful day . 
with the help of his friend dom ( chris elliott ) , ted hires slimy private investigator pat healy ( matt dillon ) to track down his only love . 
however , when pat finds mary , he falls for her too , and soon the both of them are competing for her affections . 
there's something about mary is directed by bobby and peter farrelly , who brought us dumb and dumber and kingpin . 
not exactly intelligent comedies , they are of the guilty pleasure variety where you might not want your friends or co-workers to think you had such a great time watching them . 
with their current film , the farrelly brothers have come up with something you'll not only enjoy , but also won't mind talking about the next day at the water cooler . 
the film succeeds in employing a pretty wide range of comedic styles , from the subtle to the ridiculous , and while a few of the gags might be offensive to some ( seeming like residuals from the farrelly brothers' last two films ) they almost all work . 
i have not seen many movies in the recent past that shoot for the mark and so often hit it dead on . 
one minute you'll be laughing at something ted says , and the next you'll be howling at the sight of a dog dragging him across the floor of mary's apartment . 
one of the great things this film has going for it is ben stiller . 
he is perfectly cast in the role of ted , because he's a guy who just looks awkward in almost every situation . 
ted's a nice fellow and tries to do his best , but for some reason or another things just don't always work out . 
it's comical , but also has that kind of appeal where you really feel for the him and want him to come out on top . 
actually , i've liked stiller since he did a short which aired on saturday night live back in the mid-eighties . 
the film was like a theatrical trailer for a spoof on the tom cruise/paul newman film the color of money , entitled the hustler of money . 
in it , stiller played wince ( not vince ) who is taken under the wing of an older man ( played by john mahoney ) to become a big-time bowling hustler . 
it was parody at its finest , more of which showed up in the short-lived " the ben stiller show " on the fox network in late '92/early '93 . 
like " the critic " ( which aired on abc , then fox ) , i still mourn that show's cancellation . 
cameron diaz is absolutely enchanting for most of the film , although her character seems obsessed with perfection in the men she dates , and some of the qualities she looks for make mary look paper-thin at times . 
however , diaz pulls the role off with such panache and charm , that you can still see why she's got guys just falling over each other to be with her . 
heck , i even found her laugh to be cute , even though i thought it was annoying during an appearance she made on the tonight show last week . 
my girlfriend remarked that matt dillon doesn't change , and you know , it's really true . 
he and ralph macchio must hang out or something . 
maybe they live in dick clark's pool house . 
anyway , here's another good piece of casting , as dillon slips beautifully into the role of the guy who tries to worm his way into mary's heart . 
the supporting performances are also good . 
chris elliott has a bigger part than in the abyss ( yes , check it out next time ) , and less annoying than in cabin boy . 
lin shae , who plays mary's neighbor magda ( and also appeared as the landlady in kingpin ) , provides some good laughs , especially in scenes with her benji-like dog , which acts as the focal point for a few of the funniest moments of the film . 
lee evans , as mary's friend tucker , displays a flexibility in acting and accents which surprises and contributes to an interesting plot twist . 
the farrelly brothers and scriptwriters ed decter and john j . strauss keep the comedic pacing going so that there aren't any noticeable times where the film drags . 
the only problem i saw was their use of a couple of musicians who provide segues between several key scenes . 
they appear out of nowhere and actually sing plot-relevant information right toward the camera . 
it's a device which was amusing for about three seconds when they opened the film . 
after that it got a little annoying , and it's unfortunate that those spots interrupt what would otherwise be a smooth flow . 
fortunately , filled with sight gags , humorous lines , and solid comedic acting , there's something about mary will still have you laughing after you leave the theater .