Stuck on You Review
by Laura Clifford (laura AT reelingreviews DOT com)December 11th, 2003
STUCK ON YOU
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Writer/director team Bobby and Peter Farrelly ("Shallow Hal"), perhaps reflecting on their own brotherly togetherness, continue to champion the handicapped with their uplifting tale of conjoined twins Walt (Greg Kinnear, "Auto Focus") and Bob Tenor (Matt Damon, "Gerry") in "Stuck on You."
The Farrelly brothers dispense with their usual brand of offensive, gross-out humor and deliver their best film since the offensively gross, hilarious "Kingpin." This sweetly humorous ode to brotherly love may not deliver as many belly laughs as the usual Farrelly film, but Damon and Kinnear's brilliant pairing and subtle, delayed-reaction humor make it their most satisfying effort to date.
We're immediately clued in to the brothers' affliction when they awaken and begin their bare-chested exercise routine connected from armpit to hip (Tony Gardner, who was responsible for Paltrow's two hundred extra pounds in "Shallow Hal," designed their prosthetic harness). The duo are school sports stars and a successful short order cook team in their Martha's Vineyard restaurant, Quickie Burger, where your order is free if it's not delivered in three minutes. The brothers, however, couldn't be more different (shades of Matt and Ben). Walt is a ladies' man who enjoys sex on a regular basis while Bob is the shy, quiet type who has spent the past three years in a long distance email relationship with May, a Los Angelino he has never met. Every year Walt stages a play at the local theater, but just the thought of getting onstage sends Bob into panic attacks. Bob has the strength of his convictions, though, refusing a separation operation which he would survive but leave the liverless Walt with only a 50/50 chance.
After a successful performance of 'Tru,' Walt decides he wants to pursue the acting bug. Bob swallows his anxieties and the two fly to Hollywood, get an efficiency at the Rising Star apartments and meet an agent, Morty O'Reilly (Seymour Cassel, "Passionada"), through Walt's new attraction April (Eva Mendes, "Out of Time"). A series of humorous misadventures later and Walt strikes it big, costarring with Cher in the 'Moonlighting-esque' television series 'Honey and the Beaze,' but when his secret comes out in the tabloids and Bob's condition is revealed to May (newcomer Wen Yann Shih), the brothers must seriously consider separation.
While it lacks the outrageous hair gel joke of their overrated "Something About Mary," the Farrellys' latest lingers longer with its sweeter sensibilities. The humor here is a mixture of the outrageous gag (good sport Cher gets a big laugh poking fun at her penchant for younger men with support from 'Malcolm in the Middle's' Frankie Muniz) and a clever use of the ordinary (when a rain-slickered Bob takes a phone call standing outside the shower, bathing Walt's standard rejoinder of 'I'm not here!' delivers on the second beat). The film's most offensive line?...when crossword bug Walt asks Bob for a four letter word for snatch (it's 'grab!'). The Farrellys achieve just the right tone, deriving humor from the boys' condition while never poking fun at it. This is realized in a very funny scene where Walt confronts Meryl Streep in a restaurant, who only recognizes the boys after several minutes of conversation.
Damon and Kinnear deserve heaps of credit for the physical choreography required for this role. Their movements are smooth as silk when conjoined, awkward and unbalanced when not. Watch for a beautiful bit of the duo in the background, practicing a 'dip' for bluescreen. The always welcome Seymour Cassel adds comedic grace notes as the sleazy agent who gets around outside his retirement home in a motorized cart. Cher and Meryl embrace the definition of a good sport, adding comic elements of their own into the mix. Eva Mendes abandons her tough cop roles to dive into a classic bimbo character and redeem it.
"Stuck on You" is inspired is its lovable lunacy - where else can you see Meryl Streep dancing in the musical version of "Bonnie and Clyde?"
B
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