pineapple express trailer

Stoner comedies have quite a significant sub-culture heritage in Hollywood.

From Cheech and Chong to How High to Harold and Kumar studios seem reasonably happy to churn out mass-marketed films based around the use and enjoyment of an illegal substance. That is undoubtedly a good thing, I’ve enjoyed the laughs doled out by such flicks many times and Pineapple Express does not disappoint on that front either.

Dale (Rogen) is a lazy court processor and stoner, Saul (Franco) is his dealer who fits all the stereotypes. For the sake of completeness I have to mention that Dale has a girlfriend who’s still in high school, this fact plays virtually no part in the plot but somehow gives the deepest insight into his character and some top funny moments. On a particularly fortuitous day for Dale, Saul has some top grade new weed - Pineapple Express. This new and unusual strand turns out to cause some problems for the duo. Dale witnesses a murder by a bent cop while enjoying his contraband and throws his joint away at the scene. Saul confirms that this weed is in fact rare enough to be traced back to them and so they are left with only one option - running for their lives. Unlike with the usual stoner paranoia the threat here is real and their lives are in jeopardy.

The performances of Rogen and Franco are brilliant. Rogen has nearly perfected the craft of pretty useless everyday guy who comes through when he has to. Franco on the other hand departs from his usual persona here. Gone is the dramatic James Dean lookalike and we are treated to an extremely confident comic performance. If you’ve ever seen Acting with James Franco on Funnyordie.com (and if not then you definitely should) then you will know that Franco seems like just about the funniest/coolest guy ever and here he shows he can translate that to a feature length performance. They are both backed up by Danny McBride as Red – Saul’s drug middle man, who has a much less recognisable face for now but if he keeps being this funny he will soon be another household name. Look out for the fight scene involving the three of them; you can almost feel the pain.

Pineapple Express is a real joy from start to finish and another top notch outing from the Apatow camp. Whether you are a stoner or not it is impossible to dislike this fast paced joyride through the lives of two almost stereotypical average guys thrown into a situation they have no idea how to deal with. Highly recommended.

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