Another ‘Mary’? To the Contrary, Farrelly Warns Comic Hit’s Fans

The marketing campaign for “Outside Providence,” directed by Michael Corrente and distributed by Miramax Films, is putting co-producers Peter Farrelly and his brother, Bobby, in a “slightly awkward position,” Peter said.

“I love the movie, I think Michael did a great job,” said Farrelly, on whose novel the film is based. “But Miramax is selling it as the new outrageous comedy from the guys who did ‘There’s Something About Mary.’ I’m afraid people are going to come in expecting ‘Mary’ and be disappointed because it’s not ‘Mary.’ They [Miramax] want people to come the first weekend and they want to make money. But truthfully they should be marketing it as a coming-of-age story. It’s a great movie, but it’s more in the vein of ‘Good Will Hunting.’ If people go in expecting ‘Mary,’ it’s going to be jarring.”

President of Miramax L.A. Mark Gill doesn’t agree with the “Good Will Hunting” comparison and said “Outside’s” advertising includes its coming-of-age elements as well as calling it a “trademark Farrelly brothers comedy.”

“The first job is to get an audience in and the second thing is for them to feel that they got something good out of it,” he said. “Every time we’ve done a screening for this movie, we’ve told audiences it’s the outrageous new comedy from the Farrelly brothers. . . . They see the movie and, far from being disappointed, they really like it. This is what gets them through the door and then once they see it, they’re really satisfied. Is it a little bit different from what we told them? Sure, but that’s common.”