STUCK ON YOU (2003)
Rating: 3/5 stars (Fresh)
REVIEW BY JOHN ULMER (Copyright, 2004)
"Stuck On You" is the newest comedy from the Farrelly Brothers, whose
irreverent humor has brought us some of the most daring and uproarious
films of the decade. Yet although the Farrellys are known for their
crazy, rude, slapstick humor by both their fans and enemies, "Stuck On
You" is more of a subtle comedy than anything - which is extremely
surprising given the directors' history. I think a lot of people will
leave this movie holding a different perspective towards the
Farrellys. But that's not to say the film doesn't have its flaws, as
they come in great numbers. The story is just offbeat and entertaining
enough to garner it a recommendation, if only a slight one.
It's a tale of two conjoined twins and their journey to California to
make it big in showbusiness. The aspiring actor, Walt (Greg Kinnear),
is the brother who wants a career in tinsel town. His twin, Bob (Matt
Damon), is joined with Walt at the waistline, nine inches across,
which makes it difficult for them to do anything at all on their own.
"How hard is it when you both have to go to the bathroom at the same
time?" someone asks them. "It's usually harder when only one of us has
to go," Walt replies.
After leaving their hometown of Massachusetts, where they flip burgers
at a local restaurant in 180 seconds flat, the duo head for the slums
of Hollywood, soon finding a nice apartment to stay at whilst they
find an agent. Love blossoms when Bob finally meets up with a
three-year Internet contact, a pretty Asian woman, who is very happy
to meet Bob, and vice versa. The problem is that he has not told her
about his "condition," which presents both he and Walt with a huge
problem.
"Stuck On You" is a film unlike any other I have ever seen. The
morning after, as I type a review, I wonder to myself: Did I *really*
just see that? It's so strange and unusual and unique that it almost
seems like a dream. The same thing happened with "Shallow Hal," an
unfortunately lesser movie, which was nevertheless very different from
any other comedy I had ever seen. Whereas the Farrellys somewhat poked
fun at stereotypes and packed their movies with slapstick humor, their
latest two efforts have been more bizarre, packed with strange ideas
and very unusual heroes. If anything, you have to give the brothers
some credit for achieving pure originality. This is one of the most
bizarre comedies I've ever seen. Too bad it's not very funny.
I think that's the point. What "Stuck On You" lacks in laughs it makes
up for in heart - this is a surprisingly kind and sweet-natured film,
which tells us all that you aren't what life makes out of you. It's
the complete opposite. Its heroes know this, and this is the sort of
film that makes you re-examine your own position in life and realize
just how appreciative you should be of everything. It's no
masterpiece, but I think it was intentional that for the first time in
the history of their directing careers, the brothers Farrelly decided
to end their comedy without a final punchline. It's a Farrelly
Brothers movie, all right, but it's a clear sign that they might
actually have a bit of brains, and respect for life, that wasn't
necessary in their other movies but actually feels quite welcome here.
- John Ulmer
http://www.wiredonmovies.com
e-mail: johnulmer2003@msn.com
========== X-RAMR-ID: 37529 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 1270085 X-RT-TitleID: 1127820 X-RT-SourceID: 1382 X-RT-AuthorID: 6769 X-RT-RatingText: 3/5
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews