He played tragic actor James Dean and a villain in “Spider-Man 3,” but actor James Franco says he’s always loved making people laugh, which is what he hopes his new flick “Pineapple Express” will do.
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Studios prefer their funny flicks in the benign PG-13 mold, a rating that keeps the audience broad to fill as many seats as possible. More and more, however, they are taking chances on R-rated comedies that ratchet up the rawness.
You don’t have to be high to laugh non-stop at “Pineapple Express,” the latest offering from Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen. Prepare to make room for the DVD on your stoner-comedy shelf between “Up in Smoke” and your hackey-sack collection.
Swing Vote flick review: C-
Review by Robert Bell (C-)
Leaning ever so slightly on the side of Republican, this cloying, saccharine and entirely didactic offering of Capra-esque summer counter-programming, may be the perfect treat for the senior citizen crowd who will surely gasp and feel a little naughty during the many occasions that Kevin Costner cusses and takes the Lord’s name in vain.
From the moment the film opens onto a charming small town in the south, to the moment that we learn that every person and every vote counts, Swing Vote keeps its morally superior and idealistic values at the forefront, even when alcoholism, under-aged driving and politically incorrect campaign commercials occasionally fizzle to the surface.
While doing a class project on the historical significance of the American political landscape and the right to vote, the precocious Molly Johnson (Madeline Carroll) asks her redneck alcoholic father Bud (Kevin Costner) if she can be involved in the voting process. When he gets drunk and forgets to meet her at the polling station, Molly decides to sneak in and make his vote for him.
A series of mishaps leave the vote uncounted, which becomes significant when the entire presidential election comes down to a tie and has to rely on Bud’s vote to decide who the next president will be.
When industrious local journalist Kate Madison (Paula Patton) breaks the story to the media, both the Republican (Kelsey Grammar) and Democratic (Dennis Hopper) presidential candidates make an effort to “swing” Bud’s vote, while he garners his 15-minutes of fame and his daughter learns of the political hypocrisy that masks the true needs of the American people.
While the implication that Republican political candidates use fear tactics and forcefulness to sway affiliation and Democrats blow a lot of hot air up everyone’s behind with their idealistic platforms is amusing, it’s not particularly fresh or insightful. Also, given that everyone learns their lesson in the end, any intended subversion is lost in an uplifting score and the usual “people-really-do-mean-well” crap.
What may be the most interesting subtextual aspect of Swing Vote is the notion that the average American voter is an easily manipulated, borderline-retarded, lemming. This may have been unintentional, but exists nonetheless.
Despite the contrived and calculating nature throughout, there are some moments of true hilarity that arise when Bud makes entirely inappropriate statements about political issues like abortion, gay marriage and immigration. Both candidates (illogically) change their platforms - through television commercials no less - with amusing results, which involve Mexicans running across the border with chickens, gay stereotypes standing on a rainbow flag with Kelsey Grammar and exploding children in a playground.
This mild amusement does mildly detract from the manipulative nature of the film and Kevin Costner does do his best to make his alcoholic cliché palatable, but little else is particularly digestible for anyone who doesn’t enjoy being spoon-fed pablum.
Overall, what attempts to be an accessible mediation on current political landscapes, winds up feeling a lot like those early 90’s Jim Belushi flicks where an average douchebag learns a valuable lesson and helps make the world a slightly better place.
Pineapple Express flick review: B
Review by Robert Bell (B)
The title, Pineapple Express, refers to a strain of marijuana that is "so rare, that smoking it is like killing a unicorn." In fact, if smoked, one might be inclined to look up things on the internet, talk about how hard it is to be cool and watch episodes of 227 (yes, that show with Jackee). The film - while nothing particularly special - succeeds in making the usually oblique and inaccessible (to those who aren’t under the influence) stoner comedy engaging to a wider (read sober) audience. While it will surely be appreciated more by potheads, the bizarre logic and chaotic happenings are kept relatively grounded in reality by indie director David Gordon Green’s candid, matter-of-fact technique.
Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) is a 26-year-old pothead who serves subpoena’s for a living and dates a high-school student (Amber Heard) on the cusp of college where, according to Dale, she will forget about him and get into bands like "Godspeed! You Black Emperor" and "The Shins."
After a routine visit to his weed dealer Saul (James Franco) to pick up a rare strain of marijuana known as Pineapple Express, Dale witnesses a drug Mafioso (Gary Cole) and a crooked cop (Rosie Perez) killing someone and accidentally leaves a roach at the scene of the crime. Paranoid and panicking, Dale returns to Saul to find out if this rare weed can be traced back to them.
The pair quickly learn that their paranoid delusions are very much real when a visit to marijuana middleman Red (Danny R McBride) turns to violence and a pursuit by hired baddies (Kevin Corrigan & Craig Robinson).
Pineapple Express is a shallow, slight film that really makes no effort to be anything other than a moronic comedy. Any notions of artistic integrity are thrown out the window somewhere around the third or fourth fellatio and sodomy joke. Attempting to criticize this point would be silly as the film makes absolutely no effort to say anything profound or life changing; it seeks only to paint an accurate picture of pothead nomenclature and explore astonishing notion of weed-fueled paranoia coming true. In this capacity, the film succeeds with flying colours.
Like all Apatow produced films, the second half drags with unnecessary padding and glib life lessons, but in relation to his other productions Pineapple finds itself leaning closer to the amusing antics of Superbad and 40-Year-Old Virgin than the less comically successful Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Knocked Up. Fans of the existing template will be pleased, but others may find the familiarity and initial charm of it waning.
While over-the-top fight scenes and an absurdist car chase sequence bring a great deal of humour to the film, the real scene stealer is James Franco, whose stupid grins and delayed reactions add the much needed human hilarity that Seth Rogen’s typical performance is lacking.
For a shallow, slight and insipid glance at stoner humour, one could do much worse than Pineapple Express. It’s sure to incite some laughs and the occasionally absurdist plotline is sure to keep most audience members on their toes and entertained for the majority of the running time. Anyone looking for something with depth and significance will be disappointed and should probably consider avoiding films about potheads running from serial killers.
Baghead flick review: B+
Review by Nathan Samdahl (B+)
A surprisingly engaging and well-crafted film, Baghead is a fresh addition to the relatively small pool of films that can be considered horror-comedies. Despite it being several months since I saw the flick, I can still remember it clearly, which alone speaks volumes about the film’s quality.
From its description, Baghead could easily fall into the category of a typical horror-slasher film- a group of relatively young people going out to a cabin in the woods to have some fun before eventually being terrorized by a person who wears a bag on his head. However, in this case, the early-thirties couples are four struggling actors who are attempting to go away for a weekend to write a screenplay with four juicy parts, which will kick-start their careers. The problem arises when lack of motivation foils their screenwriting endeavor and the half-ass story they came up with begins to come true. The film’s gritty camcorder visuals and the extremely down-to-earth characters make this one of the most relatable horror films in recent memory. The characters actually, for the most part, act in the sensible ways that you hope you would follow in similar circumstances. It also helps that the characters, particularly the two lead males, are hilarious, particularly before they encounter Baghead.
While the characters’ toiling at the cabin is the heart of the flick, the film’s opening sequence at a small theater/club proves to be one of the most hilarious and relatable sequences. Here both couples go see the performance of one of Matt’s friends, Jett Garner, who is played by none other than Jett Garner. The performance ends up being some of the awfully pretentious drivel that people force themselves to enjoy in a vain attempt to be cultured. Thankfully, the directors created four characters that feel the same way the flick audience does about the performance piece, making the sequence an incredibly funny introduction to the characters, particularly when they tell Jett Garner how much they enjoyed the performance.
Baghead is a bit of a slap to the face of all the piss-poor horror films produced for a budget probably ten times that of this film, which really appeared to be shot over the course of a weekend. Unfortunately, this high quality film does not seem to have much at all in the way of a decent distribution deal. Understandably, it has no recognizable actors or directors nor does it have the expected glossy visuals, but that clearly was not the plan for this comedy with dramatic and horror elements. In fact, the story of Baghead seems to pretty closely mirror the production of the film, a story made for four relatively unknown and talented actors to have a breakout role. If you ever get a chance to see this film, more than likely on DVD, take the time to see it. Despite the lack of any marketing for the film, Baghead is one of the most entertaining flicks so far this year and at a running time under an hour and a half, this is a great film to watch with an antsy group of friends.
- He’s kind of a big deal: Will Ferrell to move behind the camera to direct Danny McBride in HBO show. (Coming Soon)
- Kevin Smith wins appeal process for “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” with MPAA. Film is R-Rated. (AP)
- Jason Statham wants a shot to play the man with no fear, tosses his hat into the ring for role of Daredevil. Ben Affleck’s version, meanwhile, actually better than you remember. (LA Times)
- Javier Bardem shoots down persistent rumors that he’ll play Pablo Escobar in Joe Carnahan film. (Coming Soon)
- “Wonder Woman” gets trailerized. Wonder Woman still not interesting. (Cinematical)
It’s the buzzword of 2008: Cross-pollination. And it’s all the rage these days thanks to Marvel’s ambitious slate, which already included Nick Fury showing up in “Iron Man” and Tony Stark showing up in “The Incredible Hulk.” So if comics can get away with it, why not Judd Apatow?
We’re actually not joking. Combining Apatow’s comedies isn’t just a good idea, it’s an idea whose time very well may come soon, “Pineapple Express” star James Franco told MTV News.
When asked about the possibility of a “Pineapple Express” sequel, Franco said that not only has it been discussed, it’s about to get some real McLovin.
“Even before ‘Superbad’ came out, I think the studio was trying to get [Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg] to write a sequel, but they really didn’t want to write a sequel. I guess the kids would go to college or something like that [that was the studio’s idea],” Franco said. “And so, an answer to that was to do a ‘Superbad’/’Pineapple Express’ crossover, an unprecedented crossover flick with two directors, Greg Motolla and David Gordon Green, each directing half of the flick and somehow these characters get together, which doesn’t make sense at all, but could work.”
Rogen himself has stated that he’d be interested in a “Pineapple” sequel. But how would he combine the two universes? Just ask Franco.
“I could sell them [the characters from ‘Superbad’] something, but I think we’d want some action, so you know, somehow the kids get in trouble somehow and we have to get them out of it,” Franco mused. “And Seth plays characters in both flicks, so somehow we’d have to kill one of them off.”
And Franco’s character Saul? The drug dealing, pot smoking, hippie based at least in part on Brad Pitt’s performance in “True Romance”?
“The thing about Saul is that I don’t really think he goes anywhere,” Franco laughed. “That’s his tragedy.”
What do you think? Would you like to see a “Pineapple Express” and “Superbad” crossover? Or is that just too strange? Sound off below.
Even as a casual football fan I was taken aback when I saw the headlines that emerged in the last couple hours about Brett Favre heading to the New York Jets. This whole business takes me back to my own personal favorite memory of Brett Favre and of course it involves the flicks (you’re on a flicks blog, welcome).
Remember when the Farrelly brothers were all the rage and “There’s Something About Mary” was taking the country by storm? I do and I remember especially this awesome scene below, a rare celebrity cameo that actually paid off. And how can you really beat an opening exchange that goes:
Matt Dillon: What the hell is Brett Favre doing here?
Brett Favre: I’m in town to play the Dolphins, you dumbass.
Critically acclaimed director David Gordon Green takes a break from the brooding drama that defined such early efforts as George Washington and Undertow for this action-flavored buddy comedy concerning two pot-smoking friends (Seth Rogen and James Franco) who unwittingly become involved with a vicious gang of drug dealers.
The Fast and the Furious director Rob Cohen continues the tale set into motion by director Stephen Sommers with this globe-trotting adventure that finds explorer Rick O’Connell and son attempting to thwart a resurrected emperor’s (Jet Li) plan to enslave the entire human race. It’s been 2,000 years since China’s merciless Emperor Han and his formidable army.
‘It’s like ‘Harry Potter’ plus romance plus good-looking people,’ says one fan.
The creator of “X-Men” bumped into Wolverine at Comic-Con. After happy introductions between Stan Lee and Hugh Jackman, the actor announced that Lee would make a cameo in the upcoming “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”
“These modern superheroes, like Iron Man, Batman and Superman, they’re our mythology and (author) Alan (Moore) sort of deconstructed that mythology and said no, they’re us,” Snyder says.
It’s less than a month away from the Olympics, and I’m starting to feel the fever! Normally, I got a twisted sense of enthusiasm for the Olympics, driven by my desire to see some controversy on who gets busted for doing drugs, and breaking all sorts of world records that are inhumanly impossible. I always envisioned that someone would literally have his leg explode from too much power in a middle of a sprint, akin to a crash you would see in a NASCAR ride. Personally, I say, let them do drugs, and run a mile in less than 2 minutes. It makes for much more exciting entertainment.
But this year, I’m more excited by the new high techie suits being designed by Nike and Speedo. These suits look like skin tight superhero outfits, all shiny and sleek. And they really work. I caught the swimming trials this year, and a couple of world records were already broken, pretty much all of the winners wore the Speedo super suit. Speedo’s suit, called the LZR Racer, was so expensive to develop that they pretty much acknowledge that they’ll never recoup the cost. Each suit costs over 0, so most people would never buy them.
