The film’s climax is genuinely moving. When Hal loses the hypnosis and sees Rosemary as she really is for the first time, he has a moment of panic. He tries to force himself to see her as "thin" again. But ultimately, he chooses to look past the surface, not because of magic, but because of love. He carries her out of a burning building (a literalization of the "weight" of his commitment) and declares his love. In a vacuum, this is a beautiful metaphor for accepting a partner’s flaws. In context, it feels like a pat resolution that ignores the systemic bias Rosemary would face every day.

Released in 2001, Shallow Hal remains one of the most fascinating "time capsule" comedies of the early 2000s. It attempts to be a high-concept fable about looking past physical appearances, but it does so using the bluntest instruments possible. The result is a movie that is frequently sweet, occasionally funny, but often frustratingly hypocritical.