Kidding Because They Love

Peter and Bobby Farrelly are not exactly known for highbrow comedy. The sibling filmmakers behind the slapstick hits There’s Something About Mary and Dumb & Dumber have always relied on gross-out gags and borderline-offensive jokes to sell tickets, and while their movies frequently garner good reviews from serious critics, they are hardly the stuff of serious art. So you might have expected the folks at the Special Olympics to react with horror upon learning that the Farrelly’s next movie would feature a protagonist who fakes a mental disability in an attempt to steal the gold at the games. Instead, though, officials from the organization saw an opportunity, and the result is a movie that all involved hope treads the line of good taste in the name of humanizing those with disabilities.