I understand how this might look and I realize it may reduce whatever credibility I have as a film critic or blogger or whatever you want to call me, but please let me try to explain.
When it comes to the anals, *AHEM* excuse me, annals of low-brow comedies, Dumb & Dumber rests on the highest tier. It’s a comedy classic. Yes, it’s incredibly stupid, but there’s intelligence behind the humor, which is elevated to all kinds of heights by the spectacular performances of Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels as Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne respectively. It’s also got quite a bit of heart. I happened upon this comedic goldmine when I was 14, which is pretty much the perfect age to see it. To this day I consider it to be one of the funniest movies ever made.
Let’s flash forward, shall we?
I’m twice the age I was when I first saw Dumb & Dumber and the Farrelly Brothers have seen fit to unleash a long overdue sequel. I was excited to see Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels donning their signature hairdos and wardrobes in photos posted all over various social media outlets. My head screamed, “DANGER,” but my heart was filled with joy. I hoped beyond hope that the Farrellys would somehow regain the spark of comedic genius that gave us the original film. Through every underwhelming trailer and TV spot release, I held fast to my slowly dying belief that Dumb & Dumber To would, at the very least, contain a smidgen of the appeal that made the first one such a magical experience.
Sadly, this long overdue sequel contains exactly none of the charm of its predecessor. It’s cynical, mean-spirited and, most disappointing of all, not particularly funny. Truth be told, it’s not even much of an improvement over 2003’s Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd. And when you can’t even top a cheap knockoff of your own film, it might be time to rethink your career. Watching Carrey and Daniels reprise these roles isn’t without its moments of delight, but it’s mostly just sad. They both seem to playing caricatures of their younger selves and, though they must be commended for throwing themselves back into these roles with great gusto, the whole enterprise feels incredibly depressing and desperate. I’ll admit I had a few chuckles, but the jokes very rarely hit their mark. They tend to go for the most obvious punchline, the most awkwardly offensive, or, even more frequently, the laziest. 'Lazy' is probably the best word to describe Dumb & Dumber To. The whole plot is recycled from the first film and so many of the jokes are taken practically verbatim.
There’s no way a 20-years-later Dumb & Dumber sequel could ever have lived up to its predecessor, but it’s like the Farrellys didn’t even bother trying. The whole thing reeks of cash cow stank at its most vile and it’s really sad considering that with a bit more care this could have been something really fun. Or, I don't know, maybe asking for the filmmakers to actually care about what they're doing is a bit too much.
If you really love the first film, do yourself a favor and re-watch it for free on Netflix instant streaming instead of going out to support this garbage. You’ll thank me later. I promise.
FINAL RATING: 1.5/5
**EDIT** As my diligent friend Arik pointed out, you're not technically watching Dumb & Dumber for free on Netflix since you have to pay for it. However, if you don't have Netflix, come on over to my place and we'll watch it for free together! It'll be a glorious occasion!
