'Pineapple Express'

Much has been said of 'Pineapple Express' as the new 'stoner comedy"; which includes alumni such as 'Half Baked', 'Super Troopers', and 'Run Ronnie Run'. Stoner comedies do not entirely have to revolve around marijuana, but being stoned definitely helps the audience find things funny. 'Pineapple Express' certainly makes no bones about our protagonists' love of the ganj, but marijuana serves more as an instigator and opportunity for James Franco to showcase his considerable gift for playing a pot dealer who wears his buzz in his sly grin and half-open eyes.
Franco and Seth Rogen star here as dealer and customer who inadvertently become the targets of a drug kingpin and his crooked-policewoman sidekick. The two are chased around L.A. and end up in any outrageous situation and conversation Rogen and his screenwriting partner, Evan Goldberg, can come up with. The results involve a lot of bad fighting, a harmonious/terrifying trip into the woods, and a car chase made all the more difficult with the driver's foot caught in the windshield. The film seems to be an homage to the action-comedies of the '80's and early '90's, and it's climax is nothing short of a total blowout.
The marriage of writer Seth Rogen and director David Gordon Green is a harmonious one. Like most of the other Judd Apatow-produced comedies, the dialogue constantly veers off course in the direction of anything that might have a laugh waiting. As Gordon has demonstrated in the past, he loves virtual non-actors and lets their chemistry alone dictate many of his scenes. It's hard not to appreciate Rogen and Apatow's quest for just wanting to make people laugh, but one can't help wishing they could do it by writing better films.

Second Viewing Alert - Wednesday, 7 January, 2009
Watch soon for musings on movies that get better with subsequent viewings. In the meantime, let me take this opportunity to retract the considerably negative feel that may have come off of this last review. Watching 'Pineapple Express' on it's opening weekend was a mistake. Everything seemed fine until some perpetual college-dickhead showed up late (probably due to his need to finish off a quick second bowl) and sat right next to me - where he proceeded to demonstrate his inability to laugh like someone who isn't an asshole. I was forced to casually move to the other side of the theater where I tried to watch the movie behind some other dickhead's cell phone. I swear people, I'm strictly renting from now on, or going to the 11am show.
First off, I didn't see the more than gifted hand of director David Gordon Green. Like he demonstrated in 'George Washington' and 'All The Real Girls', he has a true love for the outdoors. The daytime shots are all kissed with a golden sunlight which make the scenes feel like an afternoon on the playground, or reminiscent of the films the '70's which maybe inspired the screenplay. Green, and his cinematographer Tim Orr, relish any opportunity to zoom in on characters during key conversations. For all the irreverence, he makes it all feel like a story worth telling. Secondly, I failed to appreciate the weight of all the supporting players. A story like this is only as good as the characters that end up involved, and every actor delivers as twisted players in this seedy underworld of L.A. Why is Rosie Perez STILL so hot? Discuss.
Greatness in art doesn't always have to be so profound. It often just has to be well played. Look at the Pixies. One of the greatest bands the states have produced, his songs were usually little more than tall tales (probably written when he was particularly tall). 'Pineapple Express' is likewise a similarly twisted comedy of errors, but it Green's hands feels REAL TALL.