![]() Wrapping up Stoner Movie Month is the epitome of a "leave-your-brain-at-the-door" comedy. This film takes the very basics of stoner life and somehow manages to make an adventure comedy from it that single-handedly launched the careers of John Cho and Kal Penn, and resurrected the career of Neil Patrick Harris. Some may remember the trailer for this, mentioning that it starred "that Asian guy from 'American Pie'" and "that Indian guy from 'Van Wilder'", being the relatively unknown Cho and Penn at the time. As for NPH, the story I heard was that the creators of 'How I Met Your Mother' approached him, wanting that basic character to be the role of Barney. The rest is history. Anyway, 'Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle' simply profiles two stoners who get high one night in their apartment, get a case of the munchies, and after seeing an appealing commercial, head for White Castle. It's a basic road trip stoner comedy where a bunch of crazy stuff happens to them along the way. Some of it, common stoner problems, but most of it pretty damn ridiculous. Like for example, I'd say the most extreme thing they do here is have them get stoned and ride a cheetah. And speaking of "extreme", there's also an interesting nostalgia attached to this movie, as there are parts of it that take you back to the early '00s in a big way. Perhaps the biggest example of this are a group of extreme skate punks who constantly pick on Harold and Kumar, using the "extreme" cliche to their comedic advantage. For those who don't remember, quite basically, all the snack food was eventually labelled "extreme" in an attempt to be more appealing and fun. You can still find "Extreme" foods today, but they're not plastered all over the place like they once were. I'm not 100% on it, but I feel like this is where the energy drink phase kicked in as well. But I digress. This is one of those movies that I can just kinda throw on any old time.The beautiful thing about it is that it IS an extremely (I've gotta stop using that word) basic idea. I mean, what was the pitch? "Two guys get stoned, get the munchies, and have an adventure on the way to get some fast food"? It also speaks to anyone who gets the munchies, not just stoners. If you've ever had that fast food craving, and just had to go out for some burgers and fries, you'll get it. Of course, do bear in mind that it's a stoner comedy, and often pretty off the wall and stupid. But in a way, I've always found this movie to have a certain charm to it. I can't quite put my finger on it. I fully realize the film is altogether pretty dumb, but because it's a movie about stoners going out for food, it's like you just can't expect anything more. That sounds bad, but I say that as an against-the-grain statement. A lot of critics hate this movie 'cause it's not exactly anything new. But again... it's a comedy movie about two stoners getting food. That's it. You CAN'T expect too much from this. Over the years, it's actually become a pretty major stoner comedy, ending up on a lot of Top 10 lists on the subject near the top. I honestly think its overall simplicity is what makes it so good for that. It doesn't pretend that it's anything more than a stoner comedy, and the message at the end of it all is seen from a mile away, but still works. I like this one for getting me out of my slumps. It's not my big go-to, but it really never fails to cheer me up either. What can I say, sit back, relax and enjoy. That's all this was made for, and, at least for me, it works.
0 Comments
![]() It's a wonder that I haven't covered this one yet, since starting this site up a couple of years ago. This is an all-time favourite of mine; probably well within my Top 5. So yeah, I'm kinda one of those culty "Dudes" in my own way. In all honesty, above all else, what does it for me is largely the dialogue. For my money, this is probably the most quote-worthy movie since 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail'. That may also be because I've seen this so many times with so many people on the same fan-level as me, but I digress. The point is, like it or hate it, the dialogue is memorable. Here we meet The Dude; real name Jeff Lebowski (Jeff Bridges). He enjoys spending his spare time bowling (no pun intended) with his friends, Vietnam veteran, Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) and kindly runt of the trio, Donny (Steve Buscemi). One day, the Dude comes home to find a couple of angry thugs looking for a pile of money, but having the wrong Jeff Lebowski in mind. During the hastle, one of them urinates on the rug, and looking for compensation, the Dude visits the other Jeff Lebowski (David Huddleston); a wealthy overachiever, playing contrast to the Dude's almost "hobo-esque" way of living - a comfortable house coat, unemployment, and White Russians as far as the film can see. He's technically unlucky with the compensation. Later on, the Dude gets a call from the Big Lebowski's assistant, Brandt (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) asking him to come back to speak with Lebowski over the matter of his kidnapped and significantly younger wife, Bunny (Tara Reid). He puts her life in the Dude's hands, and what starts as whats should be a simple ransom hand off escalates into all sorts of fun chaos, until we reach the end, which is where it will ultimately leave you very satisfied, or very disappointed (satisfied, for me, but I'll be honest, it took a few viewings). I find that there's a steady balance between this movie's haters and lovers, but it's definitely a situation where there seems to be two extremes. I seldom find anyone meeting this one in the middle. Of course, I'm a solid lover of this movie, but there are things about me to bear in mind with that. For example I love unusual and random comedy, and this is most definitely unusual and random. On top of that the overall near-realism of how some of these lines are delivered can't help but make me laugh out loud. It's especially hilarious whenever Walter loses his temper. Beyond that, there are just a lot of interesting and memorable characters throughout this movie. Although we don't necessarily get to know a whole lot about them, they end up leaving a lasting impression, and everyone acting here does a solid job of it whether it be a slightly bigger role, like Sam Elliot's Stranger, or a simple big-named cameo, like David Thewlis' Knox Harrington. This is a title that certainly won't be for everyone, nor would I recommend it to just anyone. You'll have to appreciate the random and strange side of comedy here, and not be afraid of F-shots because there's a total of 260 of them (seriously, Google actually had the answer to "how many f*cks in Big Lebowski") in 120 minutes, averaging around 2 f*cks per minute. I do hold this one close to my heart, personally. I even find the Dude to be a sort of role model of sorts. Not that he should be, but I speak more of his mellowed out personality more than anything. He's not particularly shy, he embraces the little things in life, he doesn't lose his temper when he gets angry, and above all doesn't give a damn what people think of it all. It's mentioned that he's in no way a good role model or hero, but in some ways, I beg to differ. I hope that as I recommend this, others can find the same charm that I managed to get out of it. But fair word of warning, it did take a few viewings for me to get to this point. So it's definitely one of those multiple-view-worthy movies. ![]() With a 1993 release, and being a film about high-schoolers in the 70s, this film became one of the most watched films throughout my high school. It's probably also important to note that my high school earned the nickname of "The Pharmacy" due to the amount of pot dealing and smoking that took place throughout. So this is an apt movie for such a group. But I don't think we were alone, either. If anyone remembers the 90s well, there was most definitely a 70s trend that eventually took place, mostly in the latter part of the 90s. This was largely brought on by 'That 70's Show', but I have got to throw 'Dazed and Confused' in the mix of responsibility as well. This wasn't just a film for us as teens, it was like a right of passage. If you knew this film, you were cool enough. Remember, I said high school. For some popularity was still sought after. This particular stoner comedy revolves around the last day of school in 1976, and focuses on a variety of characters. However the film seems to have a main focus on two characters in particular. First we have Pink (Jason London), a senior who is struggling between his loyalty to his friends and his loyalty to the high school football team, and just wanting to be himself. Then we have Mitch Kramer (Wiley Wiggins), a freshman who, while trying to dodge high school initiation doesn't realize he's in for one of the best nights of his life. In many ways this one calls back to the all-nighter classic 'American Graffiti'. It's a similar idea - a group of different characters hangs out, drives around and parties all the way until dawn. While it remains a stoner comedy, there's also a good, fair amount of drama in this, and it does a great job of looking at high school life from various angles. It illustrates perfectly well that there's just as much pressure in popularity as there is in being the new geek in town. Added to the cast are a variety of names before they became super famous. Not the least of which, these include Ben Affleck, Mila Jovovich, Joey Lauren Adams, Rory Cochrane and Matthew McConaughey in what would probably be considered his breakout performance. You know his famous saying "alright, alright, alright"? It's from this. This is a great movie to appreciate, even if you aren't into the weed. For my money, it's one of the best high school movies since 'The Breakfast Club' (if not the best) and it's kinda hard to think of many since that could possibly top it. We have films like 'American Pie' and 'Superbad', but high school life just wasn't captured in those comedies as well as it was here. This is an all around classic any way you slice it, and well worth the watch for anyone in any grade through high school... even if it is rated R. ![]() This month I figured I'd go over some of my all-time favourite stoner comedies. We'll start with a gem from the mid-90s called 'Friday'. Yes, the same 'Friday' that the phrases "You got knocked the F#@% out!" and "Bye, Felicia" comes from. It didn't have a huge theatrical release, but it eventually became a cult stoner classic. The story follows Craig (Ice Cube) and his best friend, Smokey (Chris Tucker) throughout one fateful Friday in South Central LA. Largely involved are a love interest for Craig named Debbie (Nia Long), a drug dealer named Big Worm (Faizon Love), the neighborhood bully, Deebo (Tiny Lister Jr.) and even Craig's parents (John Witherspoon and Anna Maria Horsford). Even though it sounds pretty half-assed, yes, that really is the basic plot. And that's kind of what makes it such a great stoner movie. The film is essentially you just hanging out with these guys one Friday when a bunch of stuff goes down. They sit on the porch, people-watch the neighbors, get high, talk to more neighbors, and get high again. It's kind of an ideal waste of time, and this movie has always been a good go-to for me if I just want something on in the background. But even in saying that it's an "ideal waste of time", the film is not at all below getting the right messages in there. It also focuses on Craig's family from Craig's perspective, and all figures feel like they're relatable. The sister provides a bit of playful sibling rivalry, the mother is a strong authority figure, and the father is the comedy relief who makes a surprise ending worth waiting for. It's a moment that sort of comes out of left field and adds a great dramatic twist to an otherwise pretty goofy comedy. It's also full of one-liners. We know the famous ones, but this movie is full of ones that don't get any attention. There are now three of these movies; this, 'Next Friday' and 'The Friday After Next' (a Christmas movie), and for my money this still holds up as the best and brightest of the three. The following movies are far more within the realm of comedy, and enjoyable in their own right, but there's not much of a dramatic twist in either of them such as this one has. You'll also get a slew of other recognizable faces like Bernie Mac, Tony Cox, Regina King to name a few. It's an easy watch, and I'd even say it's worth checking out if you're not into the Wacky Tobbacky, if only to see what all the memes and one-liners taken from this movie mean. |
Categories
All
Archives
September 2022
|