Photo by 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — On Saturday, the comedy that made us think differently about romantic comedies — and hair gel — turns 20 years old.
Sibling directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly’s follow up to their gross-out comedy hits Dumb and Dumber and Kingpin, There’s Something About Mary upped the ante in the over-the-top gag department — like that infamous prom night zipper mishap — but hid a rather sweet love story underneath its R rating.
As you may remember, Ben Stiller plays Ted, who hires a smarmy private detective, played by Matt Dillion, to find Ted’s high school crush, Mary, played by Cameron Diaz. Ted’s fondest memory — and his worst one, arguably — centered on his prom night with Mary, which ended with Ted in the hospital after the aforementioned mishap with the zipper on his rented tux.
However, when the P.I. gets a glimpse of Mary, he soon finds, as the movie’s title suggests, there’s something about her: he makes a move on her — as does pretty much every guy who crosses her path. And yes, that includes NFL legend Brett Favre.
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The movie went on to make a mint at the box office, making $176.4 million domestically that year — making it the highest-grossing comedy of 1998, and one of the most successful R-rated comedies of all time, with a worldwide gross of more than $369 million.
Copyright © 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.