Film Review

09 January 2009 04:58 BST

Pineapple Express

Directed by David Gordon Green, out date September 12th, starring Seth Rogen, James Franco, Danny McBride, Gary Cole running time 111 mins.

In a nutshell…

Superbad gets high

What's it all about?

Seth Rogen returns for yet another comedy as the loveable loser. This time he's not getting people pregnant or playing childish police officers, he's on the run from drug lords. Rogen's Dale Denton is a middle-aged waster, a court-process clerk who spends his time getting high and hooking up with his teenage girlfriend when she's let out of high school.

His dealer Saul Silver (James Franco) provides him with some top class weed, Pineapple Express, however, the decision back fires after Denton witnesses a murder and the pair are soon on the run for corrupt cops, hit-men and each other.

Who's in it?

Rogen is hot property in Hollywood right now with film executives apparently providing him with a free reign to produce his loser-based comedies at will. After the double success of Superbad and Knocked Up last year, Pineapple Express will enjoy considerable success just on the back of Rogen's name.

Franco is probably best known because of his portrayal of Harry Osborn in the Spiderman trilogy. His role here is a complete opposite to the majority of his previous serious outings but he excels as the happy-go-lucky drugs dealer Saul.

Pineapple Express is also a considerable departure for director David Gordon Green, but with Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Judd Apatow as writers, he can't really fail.

As an example...

Saul Silver: "The monkey's out the bottle!"

Red: [Pointing to his armpits] "You see these? There's no hair under here bro.
Dale: "What's the significance of that?"
Red: "It means I'm aerodynamic when I fight!"

Saul: "Man, why'd we have to go to the woods?"
Dale: "Well you didn't come up with any ideas!"
Saul: "Yeah, I came up with two - nowhere and Quizno's".

Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars

Well there is no chance of Pineapple Express picking up an Oscar but chances are pretty high of the winning some of the less high-brow prizes, such as at the MTV awards.

What the others say

"Pineapple Express emerges as a fitfully funny, tonally trippy but not entirely satisfying effort from the Judd Apatow comic fraternity." – Variety

"It's hardcore hilarious. Pineapple Express slaps a big, fat, goofy smile on your face that lasts for days." – Rolling Stone

So is it any good?

Oh absolutely. Everyone will find something to laugh about here, it all just depends on your level to humour to determine how much. Stoner films are always an easy source of comedy and Pineapple Express doesn't mind appealing to those basic stereotypes of a being a drugs-based film.

Interestingly, the majority of the laughs don't come from Rogen, who actually has become a bit tiring with his near-identical performances, instead they come from Franco and the supporting cast. Franco is superb as the continually ecstatic and paranoid dealer Saul and it so obvious that he's having a blast on screen with Rogen that it won't be surprising when the two reappear together sometime in the near future.

There are problems with this film though and some of them, surprisingly, are moral problems. There has to be a certain point where the line between people dying in comedic ways and excess violence is drawn and Pineapple Express shoot miles over that line. The violence here is fun at first but after almost two hours it becomes distasteful and is far too over the top.

Never-the-less, this is a genuinely funny film, just in the way The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Superbad were. The level of comedy is completely and totally in the gutter, it's as if two 13-year-old boys managed to get hold of the script and add in as many swear words and references to genitalia as they could.

When you watch Pineapple Express is hilarious, when you think back over it in the hours afterwards there are a few nagging problems, but in the days after it's sweet, heartfelt story and Franco's loveable performance that shine through most of all.

7/10

Richard James

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