Farrelly brothers

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Farrelly brothers
Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival.jpg
The filmmaking duo—Peter Farrelly (left) and Bobby Farrelly (right)—at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival
Born
Occupations
  • Screenwriters
  • directors
Style
  • Teen
  • science fiction
  • action
  • comedy
  • drama
  • fantasy

Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly, collectively referred to as the Farrelly brothers, are American screenwriters and directors. [1] They have made eleven films together, [2] including Dumb and Dumber , Outside Providence , and There's Something About Mary .

Contents

Early life

The brothers were raised in Cumberland, Rhode Island, and are of Irish descent. Following college, they pursued careers as television writers, notably for Seinfeld .

Themes

Each of the brothers' first four films (Dumb and Dumber, Kingpin, There's Something About Mary, and Me, Myself & Irene) has a plot centering on a road trip. These trips all originate in Rhode Island, except for Kingpin, which begins in Pennsylvania. Their films make frequent use of slapstick and toilet humor, and are often populated with blunt, profane working-class characters in small roles. Many of their films contain flashback scenes that show how a character was affected by a traumatic event. The brothers are also noted for their soundtracks, which typically feature distinctive selections of classic and contemporary power pop and folk rock songs.

Sports are a common feature of their films and they have often cast sports stars (particularly from New England teams) for bit parts and cameo appearances, including Cam Neely, Johnny Damon, Roger Clemens, Brett Favre, Anna Kournikova, and Tom Brady.

The brothers have been praised and critiqued for the way they use the subject of disability in their films. Peter Farrelly has commented:

"The problem is not that we look down on these people, but rather that we look up at them and feel that they are better than us...we revere them."

Peter Farrelly [3]

Peter Farrelly has published books, including Outside Providence and The Comedy Writer .

Filmography

Film

Film work by the Farrelly brothers
YearTitleDirectorsWritersProducersNote(s)
1994 Dumb and Dumber YesYesYesBobby uncredited as director.
1996 Kingpin YesNoNo
1998 There's Something About Mary YesYesNo
1999 Outside Providence NoYesYesBased on Peter Farrelly's 1988 novel of the same name.
2000 Me, Myself & Irene YesYesYes
2001 Say It Isn't So NoNoYes
Osmosis Jones YesNoYes
Shallow Hal YesYesYes
2003 Stuck on You YesYesYes
2005 Fever Pitch YesNoNo
The Ringer NoNoYes
2007 The Heartbreak Kid YesYesNo
2011 Hall Pass YesYesYes
2012 The Three Stooges YesYesYes
2013 Movie 43 PeterNoPeterWinner of the Razzie Award for Worst Picture.
Segments "The Pitch," "The Catch," and "Truth or Dare" director.
2014 Dumb and Dumber To YesYesYes
2018 Green Book PeterPeterPeterWinner of the Academy Award for Best Picture.
2022 [4] The Greatest Beer Run Ever PeterPeterNo
2023 [5] Champions BobbyNoNo
2024 Ricky Stanicky PeterPeterNo
TBA Dear Santa BobbyPeterYes

Television

Television work by the Farrelly brothers
YearTitleNote(s)
1992 Seinfeld 1 episode: "The Virgin," Co-writers
2002 Ozzy & Drix Executive Producers, animated series
2008 Unhitched 1 episode: "Pilot," Director, producers
2016 Trailer Park Boys 6 episodes, Director
2017 Loudermilk 3 Seasons, Creator, directors, producers
2021 The Now

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<i>Theres Something About Mary</i> 1998 romantic comedy movie

There's Something About Mary is a 1998 American romantic comedy directed by Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly, who co-wrote it with Ed Decter and John J. Strauss. The film features Cameron Diaz as the title character, while Ben Stiller, Matt Dillon, Lee Evans, and Chris Elliott all play men who are in love with Mary, and vying for her affection.

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Dumb and Dumber is a 1994 American buddy comedy film directed by Peter Farrelly, who cowrote the screenplay with Bobby Farrelly and Bennett Yellin. It is the first installment in the Dumb and Dumber franchise. Starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, it tells the story of Lloyd Christmas (Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Daniels), two dumb but well-meaning friends from Providence, Rhode Island, who set out on a cross-country trip to Aspen, Colorado, to return a briefcase full of money to its owner, thinking it was abandoned as a mistake though it was actually left as a ransom. Lauren Holly, Karen Duffy, Mike Starr, Charles Rocket, and Teri Garr play supporting roles.

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Peter John Farrelly is an American film director, screenwriter, producer and novelist. Along with his brother Bobby, the Farrelly brothers are mostly famous for directing and producing quirky comedy and romantic comedy films such as Dumb and Dumber; Shallow Hal; Me, Myself and Irene; There's Something About Mary; and the 2007 remake of The Heartbreak Kid.

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Robert Leo Farrelly Jr. is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He is one of the Farrelly brothers, alongside his brother Peter, and together are known for directing and producing quirky, slightly offensive comedy films such as Dumb and Dumber, Shallow Hal, Me, Myself and Irene, There's Something About Mary, and the 2007 remake of The Heartbreak Kid. He made his solo directorial debut in 2023 with Champions.

<i>Me, Myself & Irene</i> 2000 comedy film by Peter and Bobby Farrelly

Me, Myself & Irene is a 2000 American slapstick black comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers, and starring Jim Carrey and Renée Zellweger. Chris Cooper, Robert Forster, Richard Jenkins, Daniel Greene, Anthony Anderson, Jerod Mixon and Mongo Brownlee co-star. The film is about a Rhode Island state trooper named Charlie who, after years of continuously suppressing his rage and feelings, suffers a psychotic breakdown that results in a second personality, Hank. This was Carrey's first role in a 20th Century Fox film, along with being the Farrelly brothers' second film with Carrey since Dumb and Dumber (1994). Filming was done from May 11 to July 29, 1999 in various locations in Rhode Island and Vermont.

<i>Kingpin</i> (1996 film) 1996 US sports comedy film by Peter and Bobby Farrelly

Kingpin is a 1996 American sports comedy film directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly and written by Barry Fanaro and Mort Nathan. Starring Woody Harrelson, Randy Quaid, Vanessa Angel and Bill Murray, it tells the story of an alcoholic ex-professional bowler (Harrelson) who becomes the manager for a promising Amish talent (Quaid). It was filmed in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as a stand-in for Scranton, Amish country, and Reno, Nevada.

Zen Brant Gesner is an American television and movie actor. He is perhaps most recognized for his roles as Sinbad in the syndicated television series The Adventures of Sinbad, and was a regular cast member on the ABC daytime drama All My Children as bad boy and rapist Braden Lavery. More recently he's appeared in Miller Lite's "Man Laws" commercials as one of the "Men Of The Square Table". Gesner also appeared on an episode of the popular sitcom Friends in which he played Rachel Green's date. A graduate of the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), Gesner has appeared in several movies since his cinematic debut as "Dale's Man #1" in the 1994 comedy Dumb & Dumber, including Osmosis Jones, Me, Myself & Irene, Shallow Hal (Ralph), and There's Something About Mary. In 2005, he had a small part in the romantic comedy Fever Pitch starring Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon.

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<i>Outside Providence</i> (film) 1999 American teen stoner comedy film directed by Michael Corrente

Outside Providence is a 1999 American teen stoner comedy film adaptation of Peter Farrelly's 1988 novel of the same name. The film was directed by Michael Corrente, and it was written by Corrente and the brothers Peter and Bobby Farrelly. The Farrellys couldn't direct the film due to filming There's Something About Mary. Centering on Timothy "Dildo/Dunph" Dunphy, the film is about his life of mischief, his "incentive" to attend the Cornwall Academy preparatory boarding school, and his realization that the haze in which he has lived has to give way to something that will stay with him forever. The book is based on Peter Farrelly's experience at Kent School, a prep school in Kent, Connecticut.

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The city of Providence, Rhode Island is part of a media market that includes New Bedford, Massachusetts. The area is served by several local television stations, radio stations, newspapers, and blogs based in the cities proper and the surrounding communities of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts.

Rob Moran is an actor and producer. He has appeared in the Farrelly brothers' films Dumb and Dumber, Kingpin, There's Something About Mary, Me, Myself and Irene, Shallow Hal and Hall Pass. Moran also played the Carlin family patriarch in the American teen drama South Of Nowhere, and an ER doctor in Meet Dave. He later appeared as the doomed patriarch in the 2011 horror movie You're Next. He has made guest appearances in numerous television series as well. Since 1986, Moran has appeared in over 60 films – both screen and television – and produced a few of them as well.

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Dumb and Dumber To is a 2014 American buddy comedy film co-written and directed by the Farrelly brothers. It is the third film in the Dumb and Dumber franchise and a sequel to the 1994 film Dumb and Dumber. The film stars Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels reprising their roles 20 years after the events of the first film, and also features Rob Riggle, Laurie Holden, Rachel Melvin, and Kathleen Turner. The film tells the story of Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne, two dimwitted adults who set out on a cross-country road trip to locate Harry's daughter, who has been adopted.

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References

  1. Tribute.ca
  2. Are The Farrelly Brothers Breaking Up?-CinemaBlend
  3. "Ability Magazine: Farrelly Brothers" . Retrieved 2012-04-06.
  4. "The Greatest Beer Run Ever (2022)-IMDb". IMDb .
  5. "Champions (2023)-IMDb". IMDb .