Big Picture Big Sound

The Film

"Have you ever had a whitehead on your eyeball, Mary?"

Yeah -- if you can't appreciate the comedy of an extremely broken out Chris Elliot, you're probably not going to find many laughs in There's Something About Mary. However, despite the crude humor and hives, this is the film that actually made the directing duo of Peter and Bobby Farrelly (as well as Ben Stiller as a leading man) socially acceptable.

Stiller stars as Ted, a lovable goof whose zipper accident cost him one prom night with the girl of his dreams (Cameron Diaz). About 13 years later, he still carries a torch. With the help of his friend Dom (Elliot) and sleazy private detective Pat Healy (Matt Dillon), Ted tracks her across state lines. What ensues is a hilarious chain of events and characters, many of whom are also enticed by the effortless charms of Mary.

Despite the mainstream, the Farrellys really don't hold back on this one. While it's not as outlandish as some of the brothers' other efforts, Mary's rapid fire of jokes spares no one. In case you didn't know, the two aren't exactly P.C., but they are hilarious. You'd think such gross-out comedy wouldn't hold up after all these years. Of course, you would be wrong.

The Picture

This movie may feature Cameron Diaz at her cutest, but you'd never know it from the Blu-ray. It's a shame too, because Diaz aside, the movie has tons of bright, colorful moments. Unfortunately, the high-def just doesn't punch it up all that much. In fact, it's really disappointing. Fleshtones look ok, but for the most part, the colors are flat and the film looks really grainy. Nothing really stands out -- and that includes Matt Dillon's ridiculously ginormous choppers.

The Sound

Saying the audio matches the video well is often a compliment for HD releases. That's not the case here. Fox gave this one a DTS-HD Master Audio track. Sadly, it doesn't do a whole lot with it. Still, the Farrellys are infamous for their use of '60s and '70s music (such as The Foundations here), so your surrounds will get a little use during the background music, as well as the film's omnipresent costar Jonathan Richman. Like most comedies, though, it's all about dialogue, but even that doesn't sound all that great.

The Extras

Fox has included all of the many special features from the previous standard-def releases. Despite the lack of new materials, you can't accuse the studio of skimping here. Ever notice how most extras on comedies are filled with people patting themselves on the back for all of their ad-libbing? Not so with Mary. In fact, it seems that the Farrelly Brothers are pretty anal about the whole process, which makes the making-of feature, "Getting Behind Mary," kind of interesting. Is it 45 minutes' worth of interesting? Maybe not, but that's where the magic of fast forward comes in.

Everything else is fairly typical and a bit too serious for this release. However, we found the close-ups with Jonathan Richman and Tommy Larkin, as well as the one with W. Earl Brown somber, but short enough to be noteworthy. Bottom line?  There's plenty to see but surprisingly very little to laugh at, with just three-and-a-half minutes of outtakes.

Final Thoughts

Sure, you know the jokes now and some may not pack a punch anymore. However, after 11 years, There's Something About Mary holds up surprisingly well. For such an animated movie, though, the Blu-ray is a big disappointment. It's got the extended version of the film, and some other nifty extras. However, if you already own one of the many standard-def versions, it's certainly not worthy of an upgrade.

Where to Buy:

• There's Something About Mary on Blu-ray Disc (Amazon.com)

Product Details

• Actors: Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller, Lee Evans, Chris Elliot
• Director: Bobby Farrelly & Peter Farrelly
• Audio/Languages: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (English), DTS 5.1 (French, Spanish, Portuguese), Dolby Digital 2.0 (Thai)
• Subtitles: English SDH, Korean, Spanish, Mandarin, Portuguese, Cantonese, Indonesian, Thai
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Region: A
• Number of Discs: 1
• Rating: R
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• Blu-ray Disc Release Date: May 12, 2009
• Run Time: 119 minutes (Theatrical), 130 minutes (Extended)
• List Price: $34.98
• Extras:
  • Theatrical & Extended Versions of the Movie
  • Directors' Commentary with Peter & Bobby Farrelly
  • Directors' Bonus Commentary
  • Writers' Commentary with Ed Doctor & John J. Strauss (Theatrical Version Only)
    
  • Clay Animated Titles
  • Getting Behind Mary
  • Backstory: There's Something About Mary
  • Comedy Central: Reel Comedy
  • Up a Tree with Jonathan Richman and Tommy Larkins
  • Franks and Beans: A Conversation with W. Earl Brown
  • Exposing Themselves: Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller, Chris Elliot
  • Touchdown: a Conversation with Brett Favre
  • Interview Roulette with Harland Williams
  • Puffy, Boobs and Balls
  • Around the World with Mary
  • Marketing Mary
  • "Every Day Should Be a Holiday" - The Dandy Warhols Music Video
  • Outtakes
  • "Build Me Up Buttercup" Karaoke
  • Behind the Zipper