Shallow Hal | 
| Director: Bobby Farrelly
Actors: Jason Alexander, Kyle Gass, Daniel Greene, Nan Martin, Bruce Mcgill
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy Used: $0.66
You Save: $14.32 (96%)
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Rating:  268 reviews
Sales Rank: 8090
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dts Surround Sound, Dubbed, Dvd, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Dubbed), Spanish (Dubbed)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 113 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.6 x 0.6
MPN: FOXD2004003D
UPC: 024543040033
EAN: 0024543040033
ASIN: B00005JKLQ
Theatrical Release Date: 2001
Release Date: July 2, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
A HYPNOTIZED PLAYBOY WHO CAN ONLY SEE INNER BEAUTY DOESN'T REALIZE THAT HIS GORGEOUS GIRLFRIEND IS ACTUALLY A 300-POUND-NOT-SO-HOTTIE.
Amazon.com
Coming from the creators of Dumb & Dumber and There's Something About Mary, the sensitivity of Shallow Hal seems like a minor miracle. The codirecting Farrelly brothers haven't forsaken their lowbrow inclinations, but this clever romantic fantasy offers unexpected substance with the same comedic effrontery that made the Farrellys famous. Their antihero is Hal (Jack Black), whose fixation on beautiful women is reversed (after an encounter with self-help guru Tony Robbins) so he can see only the inner beauty of "undesirables" like his new girlfriend Rosemary (Gwyneth Paltrow), now gorgeous in Hal's eyes despite being grossly obese. The movie's handling of this conundrum is sweetly sincere, poking fun at social prejudices while validating those (overweight, homely, disabled) who are often heartbroken by Hal's brand of shallowness. The concept won't hold up to scrutiny (i.e., the movie trades one set of stereotypes for another), but Shallow Hal works as an often hilarious reminder that physical beauty is only skin deep. --Jeff Shannon
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| Customer Reviews: Read 263 more reviews...
 Surprisingly nice movie June 2, 2009
Seattle Hobbit (Seattle, WA)
I didn't have high hopes for this movie when I saw the opening credits. It's not a movie I ever would have chosen to rent -- Farrelly brothers, Jack Black? It seemed too "high school" for my tastes. However, I was recently stuck with it on a Greyhound bus in Australia. The buses there are equipped with TV screens and DVD players, and drivers often pick a movie or two to show on long trips. Then the passengers are stuck listening to it for however long it lasts, whether interested (or trying to sleep) or not. Usually, these movies are action flicks that appeal to the backpacker set but not to me, and I was prepared for this one to be of the crude comedy genre, since that also would fit into the backpacker meme.
Surprise, it is actually a romantic comedy. As a heavy gal myself, I was uncomfortable for about 5 minutes once I realized what was going on, but was gradually won over because so much of the movie rang poignantly true with my own experience, in ways that inspire thought more than laughs. That scene where Hal walks right past Rosemary at the restaurant, her presence not even seeming to register, is right out of real life for many heavy or otherwise not-conventionally-attractive gals. And when she bursts into tears and runs away, well, some might think that to be overdramatic, but it's real, too. Many of us have as our fantasy to be loved, because we never have been. And when that fantasy seems to be shattered after one's waited a decade or two or three for it, and dared to hope that it might actually be coming true, one's reaction can be strong.
The bus driver's timing was absolutely karmic, because that is exactly the movie that I needed to see at that time. I'd just been dissed by a friend, after I expressed disappointment that I spent over a thousand dollars to come visit him for 4 days and he wasn't making more than a couple hours a day of time for me. Turns out that the "wow, body like a sports illustrated swimsuit model" (at 40+? I beg to differ on that...) thin girlfriend who dumped him last year decided to reconcile with him 3 hours after my plane landed in his town. That meant he had little time to spare for me, lest he risk losing again a woman for whom he quit his job after she gave an ultimatum that it was taking him away from her too much, but who broke up with him anyway after that.(?) Daring to take issue with his sending constant text messages to two other girls when with me, and leaving me hanging, waiting for a call from him (he wasn't answering his phone at all, let alone text messaging with others, when with that girl) for hours, and then cutting short our evening out when the girl called in a panic about a case of hives, I found myself on the receiving end of a TEXT MESSAGE ending our longtime close friendship. What set him off? Apparently my strong emotional reaction to his cutting our last evening short so that he could go help the prodigal girlfriend with her hives.
Funny thing, before he saw me in person a few years ago, we chatted every day online for multiple years and yes, he used the "L" word weeks before I did. He tried to, but could not, hide from me his disappointment when he saw me for the first time and realized I was no size 8. After that meeting, it has been arms-length most of the time and I certainly never again heard the "L" word -- very different from the relationship we had before he saw my physical appearance as I truly am. My inner beauty, such as the grace and real concern for him as a close friend that I displayed when he (after ignoring me for 6 months on the insecure girlfriend's request) emailed me to say he was homeless and jobless, and I treated him like the prince I see him as, putting him up in the larger of two beds in my 4-star hotel room and buying meals for both of us when I came to visit last year, and not saying "I told you so" about the ex girlfriend's poor treatment of him, is apparently overshadowed by my being a size he does not find physically attractive. Real life can indeed be as strange as fiction.
Oh, and to the person who went on and on about guys not falling for fat chicks being a form of natural selection.... the anorectic make poorer bearers of children than do the moderately overweight, as they often suffer from various nutritional deficiencies due to lowered food intake and don't have the muscular structure to support preganancy well. (Check your cultural anthropology books. To many cultures throughout history, a solid build has been an indication of a healthy potential mother.) Also, size (or other physical limitation, such as the guy with spina bifida but tremendous arm strength in the movie) and physical fitness don't always correllate. There are many women 2/3 or even half my size who can't do a 100 mile bicycle ride, or can't do the splits, but I can.
Thumbs up to this movie for telling it like it is for many (not all) not-conventionally-attractive women, and for giving those of us who still dare to dream of being loved, a reason to hope.
Pretty Funny Film With A Good Message April 23, 2009
Craig Connell (Lockport, NY USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Do you judge a person - particularly a woman - by her outward appearance? If you do, you're "shallow" and that's the message played out in this comedy.
The humor in here is good, very funny in spots. There are plenty of jokes and sight gags. If you are obese and very sensitive, then skip this film because you won't appreciate some of the humor. But, if you can laugh at yourself, you'll enjoy it too - and especially the message this film brings in the end.
Jack Black was pretty much of an unknown actor when this came out, but he's well-known now. Gwyneth Paltrow everyone knows. She looked very pretty in here, maybe the best I've ever seen her. Jason Alexander and Joe Viterelli provide good supporting help. By the way, it was strange hearing Viterelli with an Irish accent. This is a guy who almost always plays Mafia types.
The only thing offensive to me was the beginning with some irreverent humor that was not needed, not part of the story, just a cheap shot against ministers. Also, for a lightweight comedy, the profanity could have been less. Can't someone make a modern-day comedy without language and sex issues? It can be done - just look at the classics!
Anyway, this is still a pretty funny story with, of course, a good message about judging a book by its cover.
 Bighearted, but scripty dialog and less-than-convincing acting February 15, 2009
City Of Rocks
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
It's tempting to give this a high score for the sweet message behind it: you can't judge a book by its cover. I love those type of movies because there's always a sweet surprise in it. Big-hearted.
But the acting surprised me. I think it had something to do with a script that didn't handle the message particularly well; of course you know there's a message, and a good one, too, but it has to be worked naturally into the story through events and outcomes, not through scripty, artificial dialog that preaches at the viewer. More effective to charm the audience with warm, likable characters and their weight-related struggles. Maybe the forced, artificial dialog had an impact on the acting. Moreover, they don't need the gratuitous sensuality-this story idea can carry itself just fine without it. With the right dialog.
Otherwise, a great message and a big heart.
There's A Little Bit Of Shallow Hal In All Of Us August 31, 2008
J. B. Hoyos (Chesapeake, VA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Shallow Hal" is a modern fairy tale. Like the beast in Walt Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," Hal (Jack Black) is obsessed with outward beauty. One day, Hal is hypnotized by self-help guru Tony Robbins. Now he only sees inner beauty. Soon he is falling in love with an extremely overweight Peace Corp volunteer, Rosie, who has a heart of gold (Gwyneth Paltrow). This is a very heart warming movie that teaches the viewer the importance of inner beauty. Helping those less fortunate than ourselves is more important and everlasting than having a temporary romantic fling with someone you've met at a nightclub. Unfortunately, there is a little bit of Hal in all of us.
I wish the language and the sexual innuendoes in "Shallow Hal" had been toned down to give it a PG rating. Everyone in the family needs to see this film because it has an inspirational, upbeat ending and an excellent message. Everyone should treat people with respect and kindness no matter what their handicap, deformity, appearance, etc. The world would be a nicer place in which to live.
"Shallow Hal" is hilarious thanks to a great cast and a great script. Hal is constantly opening his big mouth and getting himself into embarrassing situations, but he manages to come though them unscathed. At the beginning of the film, he is driven by male hormones; however, he experiences a character transformation and it is his heart that drives his actions. "Shallow Hal" is in the top ten of my favorite romantic comedies. It is my desire that everyone watch it and learn to concentrate more on inner beauty and less on exterior appearance. Furthermore, I must also add that the soundtrack is wonderful. I especially love the song during the closing credits, "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)."
 Realistic Hal July 1, 2008
Jason (Backwater, Alabama)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Rather than looking at this movie from an optimistic perspective, one in which the viewer is supposed to believe that this movie's plot is supposed to be about seeking the inner beauty in another, I choose to think of this movie another way. I view it as a sign of recent times of individualism and me-first attitudes that permeate Western culture.
Hal Larson (Jack Black) is a guy who is by all standards normal, or maybe even below average. Somehow, however, he thinks that he is only supposed to be with women of exquisite beauty. Of course, the only beautiful women who would actually go for him are ones with wretched insides, women who have incredibly low self-esteen and can't see their beauty. Along with Hal's best friend Mauricio (Jason Alexander) - another sub-5 on the 1 to 10 scale - they go after nothing but beautiful women.
Early in the movie Hal attends a speech by the square-jawed evil that is Tony Robbins. Sure enough, Robbins plants something in Hal's mind so that he does not see outward beauty, and has a visually projected form of body dysmorphia. In a matter of no time he has fallen for Rosemary Shanahan (Gweneth Paltrow), a mobidly obese, land-mass of a woman who has a redeeming personality.
Eventually Hal's subliminal messages subside, and he sees the actual outward reality. Whether or not Hal and Rosemary stay together is of no real importance, but it's the message that's important. In my opinion, the message is a problem. The message is one we see a lot recently: accept who you are. It's a fairly recent trend that tells people to be happy with themselves regardless of their shortcomings. I find this way of thinking sad, because then what goal or accomplishment is there? Should one even attempt to better oneself?
Aside from The Honeymooners, Fred and Wilma, and an assortment of unrealistic sitcoms, most people can't overlook the fact that the morbidly obese are the antithesis of beauty. Hate me for being truthful, but if you're honest with yourself, you'll realize that the great majority do not find an unhealthy excess of body fat to be appealing. Maybe the character Jack Black plays shouldn't have been going for the most beautiful, because, let's face it, he's not a top of the line sex symbol; however, I know for a fact he shouldn't have been with the 500lb. sea walrus named Rosemary Shanahan. And rather focusing on loving oneself, maybe she should have been doing something to lose weight and live a better life.
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