Shallow Hal Review
by Aleksandar Zambelli (zambelli AT posluh DOT hr)November 28th, 2001
Movie Review:
"Shallow Hal"
Copyright (c) 2001 Aleksandar Zambelli
Originally published in The Crimson, a Florida Tech student publication.
Directed by the Farrelly Brothers
Starring Jack Black, Gwyneth Paltrow, Victor Alexander
Genre: comedy
How do you make a comedy about the inner beauty of fat people without making it insulting? How do you make people laugh, and yet make them feel uncomfortable for laughing? The Farrelli Brothers, Peter and Bobby, certainly have a good way of doing it. Their entire career they've been walking the thin line between funny and disgusting, between witty and insulting. The brothers who brought us "Dumb and Dumber," "There's Something About Mary" and "Me, Myself and Irene" have decided to give it another shot - but this time they made the line finer and the message serious.
Hal (Jack Black - "High Fidelity") is a shallow egocentric sexist guy (or as Cosmo likes to call it, "typical male"). Traumatized as a child by his father's death, he has dedicated his adult life to seeking flimsy relationships with women who are mostly "out of his league." The wannabe Casanova is a far cry from a smooth pimp daddy though - most women reject him as the pathetic loser he really is. In his adventures, he is accompanied by another middle-aged loser, Mauricio (Victor Alexander - "Seinfeld," "Duckman"), whose biggest worry should really be buying a more convincing toupee. When he gets stuck in an elevator one day with the self-esteem guru Tony Robbins (as himself), Robbins hypnotizes Hal into seeing "the inner beauty" in women, rather than their deceiving exterior image. Hal's world turns upside down when he meets the woman of his dreams - Rosemary Shanahan (Gwyneth Paltrow - "Shakespeare In Love"), a 300-pound nurse and Peace Corpe volunteer, and daughter of Hal's boss. While Hal falls heads and heels in love with Rosemary, Mauricio tries to rescue his friend from the impending disaster.
I watched the trailers for "Shallow Hal" with a sense of sympathy for the 300-pound lady who had to sub in for the thin Gwyneth Paltrow in a movie allegedly about "inner beauty." Well, let's get that misconstruction out of the way first: there was no body double for Gwyneth in this movie. Gwyneth spent 4 hours every day of the shooting putting on a fat suit and make-up. She was the fat lady. It might not make much difference in the end, but perhaps it'll make watching "Shallow Hal" a little easier on your conscience.
The first half of "Shallow Hal" is typical Farrelli stuff - cruel jokes and uncomfortable comical situations. The Farrellis toy around with both Hal's and our perception of reality. The camera often switches between Hal's distorted view (beautiful people) and the popular view (ugly people). At first it just seems like a cheap trick, as the camera mainly focuses on women. However, the idea of beauty is then expanded to everyone - men, old people and even children. The latter especially have a very poignant effect on the viewer, as we realize that the Farrellis are not merely cracking fat jokes - but are actually trying to make a point. The beauty, indeed, is in the eye of the beholder and we need to accept this truth, either through our own understanding our through watching a silly comedy.
Besides the beautiful Gwyneth Paltrow (or so most of the world seems to agree), the rest of the cast is a good illustration of the movie's main message. Jack Black and Victor Alexander are well cast, for they certainly look more like the middle-aged guys who hit on high school girls at dance clubs, rather than like certain candidates for the next James Bond. Kudos go to the Farelli Brothers for casting Rene Kirby, a handicapped IBM retiree suffering from spina bifida (a spine defect which makes him paralyzed from the hips down) in the movie as a character who shines with the inner beauty the Farrellis are talking about. Kirby walks around on all fours, rides a bike, cracks jokes, dances around the night club, and if you stick around for the movie's credits, you can even watch him ski downhill using his arms. Insulting? I think not.
Just like its characters, this movie gradually reveals more depth to it than its trailers are willing to show. Although its story is still cheesy and contrived, and the jokes lack the necessary zest that would push this movie past the line of mediocrity, it delivers its main message loud and clear. It will make you question the idea of beauty and reality, whether you like it or not. And whether that is a sure sign of the Farrelli Brothers growing mature, or just a sign of your humble film critic growing old and soft - only time will tell.
Score: 6/10
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