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I only watched part of it.

I only watched part of it because that was all that I could get through. Bette Midler is only in it for a few minutes.

No doubt about it... this movie is awful.

As soon as this movie arrived at my local video store I rushed to rent a copy. As soon as I finished watching it I rushed it back to the store before it started stinking up my house. "Drowning Mona" is a really bad film that went wrong well before filming ever began. The premise is a good one, but the script is awful. Bette Midler plays an evil woman hated by everyone in the small town she lives in, including her own family. After she meets an untimely demise, the good-hearted sheriff, played by Danny Devito, must try and figure out who had the best motive to kill her. This film is supposed to be a dark comedy, and never delivers on either point. The bit about everyone in town driving a Yugo gets old about 30 minutes in, and from there you will find very little to laugh at. Every character in the film, with the exception of Devito is an absolute idiot, and some of the jokes about Midlers one armed son are down right offensive. I was surprised by lack of any real intellect from a cast including Jamie Lee Curtis, Neve Campbell, and Will Farrell. If I were you I would avoid this movie at any and all cost. Trust me on this one, it is truly bad film.

Wasted Talent

I watched this movie because the cast included Bette Midler, Danny DeVito and Jamie Lee Curtis. I thought: "This must be really funny." Wrong. This film is full of adolescent, predictable humor held together with the thread of a mystery: Who killed Mona?. By the end of this movie, the hackneyed humor and "obvious" plot twists lead more to the question of ... Who really cares? The one redeeming feature of the movie is that it contains a large collection of Yugos. So, if you want to feel nostalgic about the Yugo, watch this movie; otherwise, do not let the cast fool you -- skip it.

So much Potential... wasted.

You know, this film has everything going for it. A great cast, a quirky plot, and a really clever premise. The subtle "Yugo" jokes are great.
Unfortunately the screenplay is cheap and cliche. The characters, who COULD be so developed and rich, come off as flimsy and opaque because their lines are so stupid. Granted, these people are stereotypical "white trash," but that doesn't mean they have to be one layered. Real white trash are VERY dimensional (eg: Jerry Springer). There were SO MANY opportunities to capitalize on these character's goofy personalities, but the script just didn't allow for it. Don't get me wrong. It's a semi-funny flick, with some laugh-out-loud moments. I guess I just wanted more. I wanted to hear clever, witty jokes... real zingers. Instead we're left with a series of in-your-face, lame-o "hand" jokes. I just think there could of been SO MUCH MORE. If only there'd been a couple more script re-writes... or something.
It's just disappointing. So much potential... wasted. For me, it was a let down.

A very pleasant surprise

This movie hasn't, as far as I know, been released in the UK. I picked up a copy in a bin at Walmart in Richmond VA for $5.80 (there were some decent titles like THE TRUTH ABOUT CATS AND DOGS and ALL OF ME there, so it wasn't all dreck) but rather supposed that with a cast like this it had to be a real bummer. Both my lover and I were very pleasantly surprised to find it a real laugh out loud black comedy (I mean that literally). It's pretty bleak in its view of its characters, most of whom are stupid and self-interested enough to make for a pretty misanthropic evening. But Casey Affleck and Danny de Vito manage to keep their characters sympathetic enough that we both cared enough. The film also manages to avoid the characters being glamorous, which is, I suspect, why a big audience wouldn't like it; this isn't a Hollywood view of small town white trash life. I've never seen Jamie Lee Curtis being allowed to be sleazy without it being sexy glamorous sleazy. And Midler's harridan is genuinely unpleasant, not the comic OTT that one has come to expect / dread. I'm looking forward to seeing it again.

a late night laugher

if you have nothing better to do, this is a movie to do that with. somewhat predictable as to whodunnit, the eccentricities of the movie and its outright black humor are sure to bring a laugh.

great movie with a great cast

I bought this movie in Englend when i was there on vacation 4 months ago and i got this movie in a 40 DVD pack and i am glad i did because if i did not buy it i would never of seen this really great movie.This movies about how a woman that every body hates drives her car off a cliff into a river and she died and every body in town is a suspect.There is an all star cast in this movie with actors and actress like the beautiful Neve Campbell,Danny Devito,Jamie Lee Curtis,Bette Midler,Casey Affleck,William Fichtner,Paul Ben-Victor and Will Ferrell.Over all this is a must watch movie and there are heaps of good scenes and my rating is 6 out of 10.

not quite Oscar material but...

not that bad either. seems to have been pretty much slated. I really didn't think it was that bad.Ok so no wonderful special effects, no twisting and turning hard to follow plot and no breath taking scenery but so what!If you fancy a night in with a film that wont hurt your brain or frighten the living day lights out of you then you could do a lot worse.no concentration needed for this one, but try it, you might even like it. Good cast, funny moments and not a bad little story. worth a watch even if its only to see Casey Affleck's blonde hair??!

Only A Dream - Mona Dearly

DROWNING MONA is an intersting movie, to say the least, but it just did not live up to my expectations unfortunately. Wonderful cast. Danny Devito, Bette Midler, Jamie Lee Curtis, Neve Campbell, they all turn in deserving performances. It's the plot that has a few problems. The movie starts off with Mona Dearly (Bette Midler) driving away in her son's car, the brakes have been cut and Mona dies going over a cliff. Mona Dearly was a hated woman, and the question isn't who did it, but who wouldn't do it? The whole town hated her. So through flashbacks we see Mona, and how she interacted with the characters. It is a funny movie, but very slow paced. As well its a bit predictable, I knew who killed Mona long before it was explored in the movie. However there is a bit of a mystery, and intrigue here with the title. Mona Dearly is an anagram for Only A Dream, so perhaps the events unfold in the movie as if it were a dream. Still the plot left a bit to be desired, but the acting was excellent. Another small complaint is, it would have been nice to seen the Divine Miss M in more scenes than she was, her talents were not truly utilized in this film, but she gave a solid performance overall.

More of a "black whimsy" than a black comedy

Really oddball attempt at black comedy doesn't quite hit the mark because it's not really all that funny. It is full of screwy touches, such as the Yugos with personalized plates, Three Dog Night music, and nonlinear storytelling. The performances are all over the map, too; Danny DeVito and Tracey Walter underplay, Bette Midler and Neve Campbell play it fairly straight. Paul Ben-Victor, Paul Schulze and Peter Dobson are funny as the mostly incompetent and inattentive deputies. Jamie Lee Curtis is all over the place, while Bill Fichtner never quite registers at all. Casey Affleck, as marginally the main character, gives perhaps the most bizarre (and frankly, irritating) performance. A few scenes hit the mark, and there is a bit of interest in the actual mystery question of Who Killed Mona?, but more laughs were needed to offset the merely whimsical touches of the screenplay.

"Ruthless People" meets "Roshomon"

DROWNING MONA (2000) **1/2 Bette Midler, Danny De Vito, Neve Campbell, Jamie Lee Curtis, Casey Affleck, Marcus Thomas, William Fichtner, Kathleen Wilhoite, Peter Dobson, Will Ferrell, Tracy Walter. (Dir: Nick Gomez)Midler and De Vito are reunited (more or less) in this `Ruthless People' meets `Roshomon' black comedy about a suspected murder and a town full of dumb and dumber denizens that has one wonder what's in the drinking water.Set in the backwater town of Verplanck, NY - the unofficial test town for the Yugo (which is one of the many running gags the film parlays for laughs) - De Vito stars as the chief of police trying to determine the untimely death of the most hated (and hateful) woman of his quiet little hamlet, Mona Dearly. With Dearly departed (had to get that one out of the way!), Chief Rash must determine how (or more importantly why) she died after her lemon yellow Yugo (or rather her son's car) sailed off a cliff into the water below. Rash soon discovers that practically every citizen had a reason to off the dispicable Dearly including his daughter Ellen (Campbell) and her fiancee Bobby (Affleck) who runs a landscaping venture with Mona's dimwitted, and one-handed doofus sun Jeff (Thomas).A chief suspect is her equally IQ challenged spouse Phil - (Fichtner in a very funny turn, and more known for menacing creeps like in `Albino Alligator' ), whose hair seems inspired by a Farrelly Brothers film, who is Phil-andering (get it!) with the town floozy, Rona (Curtis, in an entertaining gum-chewing, chain-smoking turn), a waitress at the local diner, who engages in kinky sex involving the home game of `Wheel of Fortune' (giving new meaning to the term `I wanna buy a vowel'). What makes the familiar premise a breath of fresh air is the fine comic ensemble lowering their collective intelligence to almost a shared wavelength of their fruitless attempts to avoid suspicion and finagling a reliable alibi for their whereabouts prior to the dastardly crime. Each character seems to be only one iota smarter than the other and the whole premise of an entire populace out to ice the nastiest woman in town is ripe for humor.The film on the whole doesn't disappoint (especially the `Roshomon'-like accounts of how Jeff lost his hand - the onlyl agreeable storytelling element was he was reaching for a beer) and Curtis, De Vito and Campbell come off as old pros while Affleck, Thomas and especially Fichtner have laugh out loud funny moments (the latter in his attempt to avoid a beaning from a frying pan wielding p***ed off Milder) too. The screenplay by Peter Steinfeld only fails in the final too quick to tie up the loose ends conclusion but the biggest surprise is its director Nick Gomez, who has helmed grittier fare including `New Jersey Drive' and episodes of the late and great tv cop series `Homicide'; he knows how to let his actors get their ya-yas out. Divertingly hilarious and kookily conceived, Verplanck's inhabitants are a cross between its ficititious sister cities Rome, Wisconsin and Cicely, Alaska in its eccentric glee.

Eccentricities are a Good Thing

Many of the reviews I have read for Drowning Mona have been negative. Not many people can appreciate the eccentricities in this movie. It is no wonder then that the Region 2 DVD is outselling the American version (Region 1) by a longshot. The rest of the world can appreciate this movie, why cant we? I was not a fan of this movie upon first view, but then one night, I threw it in & viewed it with no expectations from director Nick Gomez. I fell in love with it. Being asked what he thought about Mona Dearly, Casey Affleck's character Bobby Kalzone states "Mona, she was the worst person I ever knew, just, in my entire life", the following flashback is the icing on the cake. The movie is filled with funny gems like this one. Bette Midler is fabulous, especially coming from me, since I dont usually like the roles she opts for. Neve Campbell is great & seems to be a screen giant in her role as Bobby's fiance. William Fitchner is also a highlight in his role as Phil Dearly. "You snooze, you lose" was Phil's response when given condolances of his wife's death from Peter Dobson's character Lt. Feege Gruber...Unbelievable! Danny Devito's role as Chief Rash is minimal but Devito was perfectly cast for the role. Other notables are Jamie Lee Curtis & Will Ferrell. Buy this movie, it grows on you like your In-Laws.

Underrated gem...

I believe that this movie was panned when it first came out, and I don't know why. It is truly an underrated comedic gem that deserves more recognition. The performances are perfect (with the exception of Campbell) and the dialogue is hysterical.William Fichtner steals the show as the sleazy "battered husband." His performance is tops in a stellar cast. Marcus Thomas is excellent as his son and lazy landscaping partner to Affleck, who is marvelous as the nervous and long-suffering lead. Will Ferrell puts in a great cameo as a creepy mortician.Are there flaws? Of course. As another comment mentioned, Tracy Walter's character, Clarence, could have been developed more. Also, some the other characters' run-ins with Mona probably could've been better detailed as well, and the resolution isn't the most satisfying. But this movie is less about the plot and more great characterizations and riotous dialogue.I own the DVD and I roll with laughter every time I see it, even though I practically have it memorized. This movie should be remembered as

A 'Nuns on the Run' treatment of small town life.

I like this quirky little film. It is mild, the characters are exaggerated so you don't have to take the dark story seriously, and it is fun to watch the story unfold.'Drowning Mona' is comfortable to watch. It was kinda fun the first time I saw it. I have watched it many times since, and still find it ... mildly fun.

Ranking in my favourite top 5 comedies!

This film is full of so much talent it makes me sick. Extremely funny from beginning to end, this film will stick in your memory.Basic plot: Wyatt Rash(Danny DeVito), a local police chief from Verplanck, New York, investigates a mysterious death of Mona Dearly(Bette Midler), a spiteful, loud-mouthed and around the town highly unpopular woman, who drove her Yugo off the cliff and drowned in the river. After finding out that the accident was caused by a brake failure, Rash supposes that Mona was actually murdered and begins to investigate who could be the possible killer. However, this shows itself as a quite difficult assignment, since almost everyone in town had something against her. The movie co-stars Neve Campbell, Jamie Lee Curtis and Casey Affleck among all, and is also some sort of spoof about the Yugo car company using the town of Verplanck as a test area for their new model years ago. Every vehicle in town, with the exception of trucks and police cruisers, is a Yugo.This film is not for everyone, so if you have a weak sense of humor, stay away from this one!

Waste of talent

A very poor effort to duplicate the success of "Ruthless People" but the two leads -and the entire supporting cast- can't carry it out by themselves. No good script, no jokes - nothing doing. I watched this film on video and smiled just once -perhaps in anticipation of a joke that didn't quite work out. Then I watched it again, in case I had missed something. No, both times it was equally unfunny and strained.

Not that Bad, Not that Good.

Not as bad as some people have made it out to be but it's not as good as some people had made it. The whole movie is really one very long joke, that has some very funny parts in it. Most of those parts really belongs to Neve Campbell, who steals this movie with her great performace, and William Fincher, who's performace as Mona's dead beat husban had me rolling in my seat. Other than them, Most of the actors realy don't come off that well, and the movie itself stalls about half way in.

It's a good rental, that's all.

Not Bad, Not great either

Drowning Mona is a hard movie to describe. On the one hand, I liked it because, the cast seemed to be doing the best with what the script they had to work with. On the other hand, the plot seemed choppy and the dialogue was for the most part pretty stale. Will Ferrell absolutely steals the movie with his part as the creepy funeral director who laughs inappropiately, has trouble with the right way to make eye contact, and is constantly having sexual trysts during the viewing. If you're looking for an offbeat comedy, give this a try. But don't rush out and kill yourself to see it.

* One of the worst ever!

One of the very worst films of the year is this very unfunny comedy about the murder of a woman whom everybody in the town has completely hated for years. Bette Midler as the foul-mouthed victim of the crime is excellent. Nick Gomez' direction is really not! He actually thought to make Neve Campbell a quirky romantic heroine! Whatever!

Ding Dong the witch is dead

Well, how bizarre was that? It was pretty bizarre. It's one of those alternative kind of films you like to see every now and then, just to realise how bizzare it is.

There were actually a few laughs included, but you sort of don't know what to think, so you just sit there with a puzzled look on your face. It was good how everyone's stories conflicted so much, and were so biased, that you knew everyone was full of carp.

Danny Devito didn't make use of his sense of humour, but SNL's Will Ferrell did, so that wasn't too bad. Casey Affleck was quite irritating but I guess he was meant to be. See this film if you don't feel like seeing attractive or smart people on the big screen!