Jack Black plays Shallow Hal a guy who thinks he’s god’s gift to women, but he’s not!
The movie starts off with Hal’s father dieing in a hospital and with him giving Hal a last piece of advice before he dies. This piece of advice was to never settle for a or many second-rate women. We then come back to present day where Hal and his best friend Mauricio, played by Jason Alexander, are clubbing and trying to get in with women who are very clearly out of their league and want nothing to do with them. But still they think that they are hotstuff.
Then one day Hal finds himself trapped in an elevator with Tony Robbins, played by Anthony Robbins, who is a kind of hypnotist/pyschologist guru. In a lucky twist of fate they become friends and start to talk. Tony realises that Hal’s problem is his shallowness and tells him that he can cure his problem and that he can have the most beautiful woman in the world. Hal agrees and Tony kind of hypnotises Hal so that he sees people’s inner beauty. This means that if someone is really unfortunate looking but they are kind then to Hal they look beautiful. It also works in reverse so that if someone is beautiful but they are mean and evil then they look ugly.
Then when the elevator releases them they part ways and Hal share’s a cab with a beautiful looking woman. Later Hal and his friend are clubbing again and Hal can’t believe his luck when he’s surrounded by three beautiful women who are dancing with him. Mauricio can’t see why Hal is dancing with them because to him they don’t look beautiful.
Enter Rosemary played by the gorgeous Gwyneth Paltrow. Hal sees Rosemary shopping one day and to him she’s the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen. Hal decides to follow her and try his luck. Hal manages to convince her to have lunch with him and thus the blossoming of a beautiful romance. Mauricio can see that Hal is dating someone who is quite enormous and tries to tell him that but of course Hal can only see Rosemary’s inner beauty.
Things turn sour when Rosemary turns out to be the daughter of Hal’s boss and Hal’s coworkers think that Hal is just using her to get promotions. They think this because of the way she looks. Mauricio decides to take matters into his own hands and find this Robbin’s guy and turn Hal back into his old shallow self. He convinces Robbins to tell him how to reverse it and Mauricio says to Hal ’Shallow Hal wants a gal’ while Hal is on a date with Rosemary. To keep himself from seeing Rosemary he covers his eyes with vaseline and fakes an illness. Slowly they drift apart.
Finally Rosemary sees Hal having dinner with his truly beautiful neighbour Jill who Hal used to have a crush on. Hal realises that Rosemary is the one for him and he wants to see her like she really is so he calls her on the phone at the restraunt and passes her on the way not realising who she really is.
Rosemary decides that she’s going to rejoin the peacecor and is going overseas to help them. Hal crashes Rosemary’s farewell party and confesses his true feelings for her and Hal joins her in the peacercor.
Allover a lovely story, very funny, very good. Easy to watch.