A “Dumb and Dumber” Comedy Comeback

Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels rev up the Mutts Cuts van 20 year later to test whether their hilarious stupid act is old hat.

"Dumb and Dumber" duo Harry and Lloyd apparently were named in a sweet, if odd homage to the great silent film comedian Harold Lloyd. At first blush (and they inspire plenty of blushes), the gross-out movie poster boys of the 1990s would seem to have little in common with the likable, athletic Everyman of the 1920s screen.

But two decades after they turned some stomachs and made others hurt from laughter, Harry and Lloyd are following in the vaunted footsteps of Harold Lloyd, the granddaddy of the comedy comeback. In 1947's "The Sin of Harold Diddlebock,” Lloyd transported his character from the 1925 college romp "The Freshman" into the talkies era – and middle age – with the help of director Preston Sturges.

Now, with the Farrelly Brothers back at the helm, Harry (Jeff Daniels) and Lloyd (Jim Carrey) are set to hit the accelerator on the Mutt Cuts van again, 20 years after “Dumb and Dumber” emerged as a box office hit and future cult classic. Their latest wild ride will determine whether “Dumb and Dumber To,” which opens Friday, becomes a comedy for the ages – or just one for those of us who refuse to grow up.

Not that character growth or story are key to the misadventures of the dimwitted duo, but the sequel centers on Harry’s search for the daughter he never knew he had. The parenting plot is strangely appropriate considering that “Dumb and Dumber” was steeped in the lineage of silly comedy. Harry and Lloyd are less Harold Lloyd, though, than the illegitimate spawn of The Three Stooges – and not only because of Harry’s Larry-inspired hair and Lloyd’s Moe-like cut.

Daniels and Carrey bring a Stooge-like embrace of stupidity, unabashed anarchy and frenetic energy to their roles  – even more so than the fine cast that filled the Farrelly’s amiable, if not gut-busting 2012 film ode to Moe, Larry and Curly. Harry and Lloyd also carry the DNA of Steve Martin’s Navin Johnson from “The Jerk,” a strain passed along to the likes of Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell, who thrived in the post-“Dumb and Dumber” years.

Harry and Lloyd are back to reclaim the comedy throne – though as Harry discovered in the most hilarious and disgusting scene of “Dumb and Dumber,” always check to see whether the throne is working first.

Harry and Lloyd never learn, judging from the preview, above.

Jere Hester is founding director of the award-winning, multimedia NYCity News Service at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism. He is also the author of "Raising a Beatle Baby: How John, Paul, George and Ringo Helped us Come Together as a Family." Follow him on Twitter.

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