Danny De Vito and Bette Midler are really had outstanding career, but in this film only Midler is funny as ruthless woman and De Vito as Xeriff, then as good guy maybe this explain in part that picture didn't take off, quite often De Vito play a devious guy who try find advantage to yourself so as normal guy...he's totally wasted in this role and the remain cast didn't help so much...maybe the two deputy with the weak jokes about how Jeff lost your hand...another waste was not explore Will Ferrell's character who deserved more space which is really outrageous funny!!!

This movie is great. It's full of stars, many before their prime. Three Dog Night allover the soundtrack. Sukie and the diner owner's sister from the Gilmore Girls pops up for a moment. The girl from Studio 54. Ben Affleck's little brother. Bette Midler who was the queen of the beloved plays a disgusting person. Danny DeVitto who normally plays disgusting is a pretty good dude. The support cast is packed full of recognizable character actors. The story is compelling. The plot is convoluted, filled with flashbacks. Yugos everywhere. The product placement is so blatant its funny in and of itself. I really appreciate how thy dare to make most of the Characters such terrible people.

I own over 1,000 movies and Drowning Mona is one of my favorites. It's a dark comedy... which not everyone can appreciate, hence the bad reviews... but the dialog is hysterical and the characters are awesome.Set in the quirky little town of Verplanck, New York... where virtually everyone drives a Yugo with a vanity plate... the movie is filled with odd characters that are the real key to it's overall charm.Bette Midler shines in the role of the recently deceased Mona... a woman with few if any redeeming qualities.Jamie Lee Curtis is sublime in the role of the slutty waitress Rona... complete with mullet and dangling cigarette.Pay attention to the details. That's where some of the best humor lies.If you enjoy dark, tongue-in-cheek, bizarre little comedies, this is your movie.

I can't understand how anyone can't find at least one redeeming quality to this movie, I think it is HILARIOUS, but maybe it's because I also live in New York, though have never driven a Yugo, but that's not the point either, LOL....you have to accept this film for what it is and was intended to be; an incredulously deep, dark comedy, in the style of the classic 'noir' only with a satirical edge and in the daytime. One has to sympathize with Sheriff Rash, wait, no, no, he's not actually a sheriff, LOL....the witty, yet gruff and banal yet exaggerated repartee, no...banter, is the element that makes this film a true comedy classic, I would equate the likes of this comedy with that of "The Birdcage", an incredulous, somewhat exasperating take on normal everyday life and the people that help to convolute it, LOL.....I love you Mona Dearly...but wouldn't miss you too terribly, LOL...see it, only have your tongue in your cheek! EXCELLENT!