10 Opening Movie Scenes That Wanted To Make You Uncomfortable
8. There's Something About Mary
There's Something About Mary boasts one of the most infamously cringe-inducing opening set-pieces in the history of mainstream Hollywood comedy - a penile injury gag so viscerally unnerving you needn't have a penis to develop sympathy pains.
In a traumatic and surprisingly lengthy opening sequence which sets up the rest of the movie, high-schooler Ted Stroehmann (Ben Stiller) is preparing to go to prom with the girl of his dreams, Mary Jensen (Cameron Diaz).
He heads to the bathroom in Mary's house to pee, but after getting distracted, ends up trapping his balls in his trouser zipper.
An excruciating sequence follows as Mary's parents enter the bathroom to try and help a panicking Ted out, and before long, the police and fire department are also on the scene lending their "expertise."
After a cop pulls the zipper down, we smash cut to Ted being removed from the house on a gurney by paramedics, all while the entire neighbourhood looks on. And somehow worst of all, Ted never got the opportunity to take Mary to prom.
Few comedies would have the self-confidence to invest in such a prolonged setup and payoff for a gag, but in the case of There's Something About Mary, it left viewers the world over feeling as queasy as they were amused.