Dumb and Dumber To - Nothing like sticking to what you know

If we ignore the awful ‘Dumb and Dumberer’ sequel which didn’t star either of the first ‘Dumb and Dumber’s’ stars, ‘Dumb and Dumber To’ is the ‘proper’ sequel to the rather delightfully offensive 1994 comedy hit.

Yes, twenty years is a long time and to make a sequel starring the same cast does seem rather brave.  In some ways, you could look at it like the film-makers have succeeded perfectly.  In other ways, you could also say they’ve failed.  The fact is that Part 2 (or should that be ‘Part To?’) is exactly the same as the first one.  That could be seen as a benefit, as it certainly feels like a ‘Dumb and Dumber movie,’ but you could find yourself predicting punch lines.  All the gags are basically the same, only using slight variations on the original and all the situations also seem to have been duplicated – even down to the fact that when the pair of dumb-dumbs arrives at their final destination, they get ‘new clothes.’

Lloyd and Harry (played perfectly by Jim Carry and Jeff Daniels) again have to travel across the country and – again – they’re being pursued by ‘dark forces.’ So, you have the same plot, largely populated with the same gags.  I did find the film funny, even with the recycled material.  Or should I say I found MOST of the film funny?  The first three quarters were good (ignoring the fact that I’d seen it all before), but when the pair arrived at the last location, there was a long spell where I didn’t find myself laughing much at all.

If you enjoyed the original, you’ll probably get something out of this.  I liked seeing Jim Carry and Jeff Daniels back together again.  It was like seeing old friends.  But there was an overall feeling of de ja vu that you’re going to definitely have to ignore to get the most out of this film.  The humour is pretty crude all in all and I can see a lot of people these days finding the jokes 'immature' and 'low brow.' I guess that must be my kind of sense of humour because I enjoyed all the gags, even though they're hardly biting political satire.

Oh, and the 'sheepdog' car used in the first film and much of the marketing for this new film is only in it for about two minutes.  Yes, I felt robbed!

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that