It’s pretty well established what can be expected from a movie by the Farrelly Brothers. Moments of romantic tenderness are employed to provide emotional ballast to nonsensical plots marked by a series of raunchy episodes memorable — or reviled — for their outrageous physical-based comedy. Efforts like Dumb & Dumber and There’s Something About Mary are among the more successful examples of this formula, one that has continued through films like Me, Myself & Irene, Stuck on You and The Heartbreak Kid. In other words, the brothers rarely stray outside their comfort zone. And as their latest proves, that’s a problem.
This article appears in Feb 24 – Mar 2, 2011.