Director Peter Farrelly’s Movie Shallow Hal’s Message of 2011 is Timeless.
In 2011, director Peter Farrelly worked alongside his brother Bobby Farrelly in co-directing the movie Shallow Hal. The message of the movie — to see beyond the physical attributes when searching for a partner — was as relevant then as it is now.
Hal (the protagonist of the movie) has spent his whole life focusing on external attributes and outer beauty in his search for a partner. This is not surprising given two main reasons: first, it is indicative of the society in which we live. Second, this was likely the message he received in his upbringing given the scene depicting him with his father on his deathbed. Whereas one might hope parents would give a message the importance of living a life filled with wholesome values, Hal’s father’s final message to his son is the exact opposite as he tells him to find “a classic beauty with a perfect can,” and not marry for love like he did.
Thankfully there is a much better message later on in the movie. Motivational speaker and life coach Anthony Robbins hints at the good that we should take away from the movie. He says: “Inner beauty’s the easiest thing in the world to see when you’re looking for it…the brain sees what the heart wants to feel.”
External beauty has been an issue a huge majority of people have had to confront throughout history and it seems it is still very much here today. One example of this was elucidated in a recent study conducted by professors at the University of Iowa. They revealed an actual correlation between one’s income and their body shape, bolstering the reality of the existence of the beauty premium. According to Iowa University Associate Professor Suyong Song, their estimate found that a “one centimeter increase in stature (converted in height) is associated with approximately $998 increase in family income for a male who earns $70,000 of the median family income. [For women] one unit decrease in obesity (converted in BMI) is associated with approximately $934 increase in the family income for a female who earns $70,000 of family income.”
This is disturbing and shows that the issue Shallow Hal deals with in the movie has not only not improved in the last decade but extends to other issues like income (with more studies showing how it affects many other selection experiences too). Furthermore, due to this pressure on looks the issue of eating disorders, OCD, excessive addiction and other mental health matters will only continue to worsen.
We can only hope that director Peter Farrelly and others create more movies with a message to counter the disturbing issue of so many Shallow Hal type people.