Reaching New Levels of Dumb

The Scene: Tuesday’s benefit world premiere of New Line Cinema’s “Dumb and Dumber” at the Cinerama Dome. A party followed at the Hollywood Palladium. This is a film that wallows ecstatically in the joy of dopiness. “It’s on the cutting edge of stupidity,” said studio chairman Bob Shaye.

How Dumb? “We wanted this to be the dumbest premiere of all time,” producer Brad Krevoy said. “We were going to have the red carpet lead to doors that didn’t open. Then we decided that wasn’t dumb enough.”

Who Was There: The film’s stars, Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels; director Peter Farrelly; producers Krevoy, Charles Wessler and Steve Stabler; among the 1,000 guests were Richard Pryor (who drove himself on an electric three-wheeled vehicle), Dennis Miller, Pauly Shore, Magic Johnson, Jennifer Tilly, Stephen Baldwin, Rodney Dangerfield, Mike Marcus, Sid Ganis, David Colden, Joely Fisher and Dwight Yoakam.

Quoted: “This movie is about two of the dumbest guys you’ve ever met in your life,” Daniels said. “The combined IQ of these two characters would be that of Forrest Gump.”

Besides Dumb: Fortunately, the film wasn’t merely dumb. It was also tasteless. Among the sources of jokes were urine swigging, parakeet decapitation, laxatives, blind children, bestiality, flatulence, saliva, belching, death by poisoning, and Leslie Abramson. “I hate PC movies,” said New Line President Mike De Luca. “Humor is for taboo subjects.”

Overheard: “It lives up to its title”; “It was more than dumb. It rose to stupidity.” And, “Who was the guy who said ‘No one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public?’ ”

Money Matters: Tickets were $150 each and more than $100,000 was raised for the Magic Johnson Foundation. The funds will be used for AIDS patient care facilities.

Buzz: It’s universally expected to be a hit. The timing of the film’s release is too perfect, coming at a time when the country is dumbing down, was the consensus. One guest said that if the country’s dumb enough to elect Newt Gingrich Speaker of the House, it’s dumb enough for this.

Hollywood Wisdom: “For the audience it’s intended for, this movie will do spectacularly,” an exec from a rival studio said. “For the audience it’s not intended for, who cares?”