Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. I. Can't. Wait. To. See. This. Mother. Fathering. Movie. These guys can do no wrong. Judd Apatow, Evan Goldberg, Shauna Roberts, Seth Rogen, Bill Hader and Jonah Hill to name a few... they are totally rocking. KNOCKED UP is great, SUPERBAD is great. They are kings of the world. Now this next one is called PINEAPPLE EXPRESS. Back in May Moriarty wrote a bit about visiting the set and the movie is already screening. What's interesting is that this one is being directed by indie favorite David Gordon Green. I want this to rock my balls so bad and it sounds like I may get my wish. The reviews began coming in after last night's first test screening... annnnndddd.....
“The Pineapple Express” is very, very good, and it has the potential to be great. First—my understanding is that we were the first audience to screen the film, so all the usual technical limitations were present: placeholder music, discoloration, some incomplete effects sequences. None of this really mattered in the end, because, although this is one of the “bigger” projects the Apatow/Rogen crew have yet undertaken, the “flash” is really there to serve the comedy, and most of said flash is there for camp, anyway. Also, the music cues were actually pretty good; for placeholder music, I didn’t hear anything all that distracting. We were also, I think, the first audience to screen the “Walk Hard” trailer. Good audience reception. Huge laughs for Paul Rudd delivering a tongue-in-cheek John Lennon impersonation. I get the sense that the parody in this film leans to heavily on “Walk The Line” riffs, but Apatow and crew are good with parody and “Freaks and Geeks” taught me to trust Jake Kasdan. Nothing in the trailer fell flat, though, so I guess that’s a good sign. MILD SPOILERS Point blank, “Pineapple Express” isn’t a particularly complicated movie—it’s a film noir/action movie farce with a liberal dose of Apatowism. Seth Rogen is a process server named Dale (?) who makes his living serving (deceiving, with fake outfits) people into receiving their subpoenas. Dale has a teenage girlfriend and procures choice weed (the “Pineapple Express” from the title) from a good-natured burnout named Sal (James Franco, channeling Daniel Desario and the dazed-off-his-ass Harry Osborne from “Spiderman 3”). Dale runs into some trouble when he witnesses a drug boss (Gary Cole) and a cop (of all people, Rosie Perez) take down a hitman; problem is, Dale drops a joint “escaping” and the drug boss just happens to supply Sal’s weed. Most of the movie follows Dale and Sal as they (1) try to dodge strongmen and cops and (2—later) try to take down the Cole/Perez hydra (in the middle of an gang war, no less). So there are shades here of Hitchock (“The Man Who Knew Too Li—Much”), a gloss on Mike Hammer-ish noir rough-ups, and even a play on the whole “Yojimbo”/ “Fistful of Dollars” “playing the gang war” thing. Like “Hot Fuzz”, “Pineapple Express” is very in love with the ultraviolent clichés of its chosen genre, and the filmmakers are just sincere enough to carry it off. “Pineapple” is to crime caper what “Knocked Up” and “40-Year Old Virgin” were/are to romantic comedy—THAT sincere, but also that GOOD. Those who have followed the recent slew of Apatow-produced, Rogen-starring films will have a good idea of what they’re in for—only this time, it’s as much about stretching absurdity (a notch below “Anchorman”, but more surreal than “Virgin” or “Knocked up”—haven’t seen “Superbad”, but we’re probably operating at a little more ridiculous than that) as it is character moments. What’s important here is that Rogen and Goldberg’s conversational, geekish humor blends really well with the generally overloaded action pieces—it’s like a scene in a certain episode of “Freaks and Geeks” where Sam and the Weir parents watch an excessively brutal cop show on television together. Excellent performances all around. Rogen and Franco work wonderful together—a lot of unsubtle, but ultimately harmless, homoeroticism—and apart; Rogen is coming into his own as a completely believable comedy leading man, and Franco shows a little more subtlety and that patented creepiness than we’ve seen in the past couple of years. The supporting cast, especially Danny McBride (I’m cross-referencing names on IMDB here, so I think that’s him) as the middleman between Sal and Gary Cole (he features prominently in a few genuinely painful—but very well-choreographed, and, cringing aside, bust-a-nut—fight scenes), is top notch. Followers of Apatow will be thrilled to know that a few regulars, including Steve Bannos, Kevin Corrigan, Craig Robinson (the bouncer from “Knocked Up” and the “Office” regular) and Ken Jeong (the abrasive doctor from “Knocked Up”), feature into the gang slaughterfest. HOWEVER—the film isn’t perfect, and while the present cut isn’t fatally flawed—it could go to theaters tomorrow and might count as a mixed, but more successful than unsuccessful, success—it could use some work. (1) The subplot with Dale’s jailbait girlfriend really doesn’t come off—not that it isn’t well acted, but it feels like it’s been flown in from a romantic comedy—not all that germane to the plot, dropped hard about halfway through the film, and a real tension deflator amidst all the chaos. (2) The first half of the final “shootout” isn’t quite over-the-top enough to sustain the comedy built up through the absurdist middle act; the audience didn’t quite pick up on some of the irony, and a lot of that has to do with oddly menacing performances from Cole and Perez—the big bads, who are really there to just swell the plot and fight, are probably short for sneering evilocity. (3) A B&W introduction, featuring a great bit by Bill Hader, seems to set the tone for the film, but all it does is explain a more or less irrelevant aspect of the narrative—good, but maybe just for DVD extras. I’m sure that the producers will devote a sufficient amount of time to working out the proper beats and everything, but essentially all of the comedy comes off—it’s just a matter of where the film wants to put that comedy, and where “Pineapple” dedicates all that comedic energy. Once the film embraces the ridiculousness of it all just that extra inch—WITHOUT sacrificing in the intimacy of the character interaction and the performances—it will KICK ALL ASS—maybe even better, as a genre parody, than “Hot Fuzz”—and I don’t say that lightly. One more note—knowing how many edits “Knocked Up” went through (different director, but similar background), I had to share a line that may or may not get cut from the final product—at one point, before getting thrown into an underground pit, Sal says something like, “What, you’ve got a Rancor down there?” Now that’s comedic class. Most of you will enjoy this movie, so hope appropriately. If you use this (etc.), call me “thank you for using Moondog in the soundtrack, now try fitting Anthony Braxton or the Art Ensemble of Chicago into the next film—and bring Linda Cardellini back into the Apatow fold, please” OR Carlos the Dwarf.
Thanks... I'm going to call you "thank you for using Moondog in the soundtrack, now try fitting Anthony Braxton or the Art Ensemble of Chicago into the next film-and bring Linda Cardellini back into the Apatow fold, please." The "Carlose the Dwarf" handle is just too long, sorry. Here's the next one!
Pineapple Express is fucking funny. So funny that my helper monkey laughed his fury little balls off. So stop reading and go see it whenever it hits theaters. What? You're still reading? OK I'll spill. The set-up is pretty simple. Seth Rogen has a shitty job as a process server that allows him/compels him to get high everyday. After witnessing a murder, Rogen is forced to go on the run from both the cops and the crooks with his pothead dealer played by James Franco. Hilarity ensues. There’s an instantly recognizable relationship of almost friendship with the dealer. Anyone who’s ever sat in a cramped apartment waiting to get an ounce from a guy you kinda know and trust just enough to buy weed from will cringe with delight at the banter between Rogen and Franco. The promises to hang out. The latest device that only the warped, drug-fueled mind of a pothead could concoct to get even higher. The chemistry between the two is fantastic. If their relationship didn't work, neither would the movie and the two are perfect together. And on a side note, who knew James Franco could be so fucking funny? He inhabits this stoner. Seriously the dude’s great. Here’s another guy trapped in the Hollywood cycle of casting. James, no more Flyboys, no more Annapolis (although I get wanting to be paid to roll around with Jordana Brewster). You've got Spiderman money to fall back on now. There’s no need to jump on every offer they throw at you. And to the studio suits, would somebody get this guy in another comedy. Rogen is funny and clever in his portrayal and avoids the mistake of making his character yet another aimless pot head. He slips so comfortably into the role and is so likable that even when he’s uptight he’s easy going. The action felt organic to the settings and characters. These aren't the guys that are kicking open doors, guns blazing. They're out of shape pot heads forced to do things they've only seen on TV so they'll survive long enough to get high again. The fist fights are spastic and maniacally uncoordinated, and involve everything from bongs to ashtrays to florescent light bulbs. The car chase made me laugh out loud. And the big finale shoot-out almost had the feel of 1980s action comedy but without being dated. The movie was directed by David Gordon Green from a script by Rogen and Evan Goldberg. Pineapple Express seems like a huge departure for Green, and I'd say he pulled it off quite nicely. The only other movie of his I've ever seen is Undertow and with that as a point of reference I had no idea where this movie might head. The creepy little, lead paint eating kid from that movie still gives me nightmares. Pineapple Express is a thousand times better then the recent crop of pot comedies like Harold & Kumar. I'd actually compare it something like Strange Brew, but I love that movie to an unhealthy degree. (Brakes don't work, might as well not steer.) Obviously I liked the movie and my helper monkey gives it Two Buds Up, so smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.
Let's get another perspective, yeah?
dear harry, please post this, it is my first review ever and i think it was a really fantastic movie that needs good word spread about it. Ok im a long time reader, first time reviewer, but I have never been compelled to review something until this night. Tonight I saw an advanced screening of the judd apatow produced, Seth Rogen/Evan Goldberg written film: Pineapple Express. It stars Seth Rogen as Dale, a stoner, who buys his weed from a dealer named Saul who was played by James Franco. Yes that’s right, james franco of spiderman. Before seeing this movie I thought james franco was a terrible actor…granted he was good in freaks and geeks, his work in the spiderman films just made me not enjoy him at all. But, my god, has that all changed. The first image of him on screen got a pretty sizable laugh from the audience because seeing him as a long haired pot dealer is just such an unusual role for him, unusual, yet portrayed beautifully. Anyhow, saul introduces dale to a very “rare” brand of weed that was grown in an underground government bunker in the middle of nowhere. The weed is called “pineapple express”. I don’t really want to give a synopsis of the film but basically a quick rundown is that this weed gets saul and dale into a whole mess of trouble that involves a dirty she-cop played by rosie perez, two relentless thugs who kill anybody including their own friends just to get to saul and dale, an insane police car chase, and some really graphic and violent fights leading up to basically a battle royale between saul and dale, the bad guy and his henchmen, and “the asians”. The running time was a little over 2 hours and this movie, according to imdb, doesn’t come out till aug. 8 2008. So I guess that means they will cut it down a bit. What I personally enjoyed about this movie was that it reminded me a lot of no holds barred action movies from the 1980’s. I guess that means like Die Hard, or Predator, or Robocop. I feel like those movies always had a relentless villain and many, many henchmen who were always killed in unique and awesome ways by the hero who of course never gets killed. But what made this movie different from those movies is that the hero’s in this movie are complete stoner idiots. They are stoned pretty much for the entirety of the movie which just made for lots of laughs. There were some other funny aspects that were thrown in: in the beginning, there was a black and white opening scene that was supposed to be the 1950’s I guess (it was never said), but basically it took place in the government bunker in which marijuana tests were being done on a guinea pig guy played by bill hader who is just hilarious with everything he does. He’s one half of the 2 best players on SNL in recent years, the other being Kristen wiig naturally. Also, seth rogens dale is dating a high school girl which involved a hilarious scene where he visits her at her school and is accosted by one of her teachers played by joe lo truglio of “the state” and “superbad” fame. He plays a tool, similar to the character he plays in superbad. Its an awesome scene which involves the memorable line, “ well, time to go suck the days dick!” But all in all this movie was unique and hilarious. There were times when I was laughing uncontrollably and I might have possibly cried with laughter. Its really a shame that I have to wait a full year before anyone will know what im talking about but I hope someone remembers this review next august and goes to see this movie opening night. Judd Apatow was sitting a few rows ahead of me and he’s just awesome. One last thing: before the movie they showed a brand new trailer for another apatow film: “Walk Hard”. I recently read some negative reviews of this movie on this site and just from the trailer alone I can see some ups and downs. I can clearly see that it’s a spoof of the movies: “ray” and “walk the line” just by the storyline and the way its shot, what-with live song performances and whatnot. Now granted this movie probably has some funny moments, it reminded me of Talladega nights a bit, mainly because John C. Reilly is the star of it. Now that movie was funny but not a classic by far in my mind. The way I determine if a movie is good is if I would buy it on dvd. And I would not buy Talladega nights on dvd. So, I don’t know, that’s the first impression I got of it from the trailer, plus the mixed reviews on this site, I don’t know, we’ll see when that one comes out in December. Ok well that’s my end of it, time to go suck the days dick! If you use this call me McLovin.
And the final one we got in!
Hey guys. Just got back from the first ever test screening of The Pineapple Express at the AMC Burbank and my body is still aching from all of that damn laughing. Judd Apatow and Seth Rogan have been on a roll lately, with 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, and it looks like they're gonna have another hit on their hands for the summer of 2008. Now, Apatow may have contributed to the script on this one, but he's given the director's chair to David Gordon Green. Wait a minute, David Gordon Green!!? The same guy that gave us such quiet, thought-provoking dramas as George Washington, All the Real Girls and Undertow? Not really the first director one would think of in conjunction with Apatow, that's for sure. So, I honestly didn't know what to expect. A film called The Pineapple Express with DGG directing and Seth Rogan starring? Would it be reminiscent of Peter Weir's pairing with Jim Carrey, or Paul Thomas Anderson's collaboration with Adam Sandler? Could Seth Rogan pull of the dramatic depth that a DGG film requires? Well, it seems we'll have to wait a little longer for the answer to that question, because The Pineapple Express is one the most brilliantly shallow films ever made! A complete 180 degree turn for DGG, almost as if he's trying to detoxify himself from all that meditative, dramatic work. This is basically a stoner/buddy comedy, and it has less in common with Knocked Up or 40 Year Old Virgin than it does with classics like Up in Smoke or Friday. The story revolves around Dale Denton (Rogan) who, as a process server, is the guy that everyone hates to see ("You've been served!"). He's been dating a high school girl (Amber Heard) for some time, but is reluctant to take the next step of meeting her parents. The plot kicks into gear when he meets up with his regular ganja dealer Saul (James Franco) who's recently come into possession of the latest (and rarest) weed on the market called Pineapple Express. Later that night, Dale witnesses a brutal murder on the job, and tosses the joint he's been smoking in his haste to flee the scene. Of course, he doesn't realize how rare the substance is, and the killer (who spotted him) stumbles upon the evidence, takes a puff and pretty much exclaims "Aha! Pineapple Express!" Now that both Dale and Saul are linked to the scene of the crime, the rest of the film chronicles their journey on the run from the bad guys and the police. I'm not gonna spoil any more of the specific scenes from the film, because the best part about it is not knowing where it's going. It maintains a very humorous vibe, punctuated by several laugh-out-loud moments that had the audience cheering. The climax is especially satisfying, because the movie literally veers from "stoner comedy" into Sam Peckinpah territory, if that makes any kind of sense. This is one violent motion picture, and will definitely be a hard R when it gets released. I've heard people describe it as Knocked Up meets Reservoir Dogs, which is accurate to a certain degree. I wouldn't really compare it with Knocked Up though, as that's more of a cleverly written comedy with a lot of true-life wit included. Pineapple Express is more like Dumb and Dumber meets Reservoir Dogs, or Cheech and Chong meets The Wild Bunch. The script by Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg (with a story by Apatow) is pretty minimal to say the least, but who looks for depth in a stoner comedy? Rogan makes for a great lead. He's sort of the Everyman that audiences can always relate to, no matter what situation he finds himself in. But the true star of this film is Franco, who has never been even close to this hilarious before (his role in Freaks and Geeks included). The audience was rolling in the aisles every time he appeared on screen, let alone opened his mouth to say something. It's by far the funniest stoner performance I've ever seen (and that includes Cheech and Chong, Chris Tucker's Smokey, and hell, even Brad Pitt in True Romance). He carries that eyes-glazed-over look, which is hysterical, throughout the entire film, and I could tell that the audience really dug the hell outta his character. Now I know it sounds like I'm praising this thing to no end, but the film is far from perfect. It runs probably about 15 minutes too long, and a lot of the scenes could've been tightened up, and maybe even one or two of them deleted. Rogan and Franco are high for almost the entire movie, so there are a lot of moments with the two of them just bantering back and forth about nonsense. It works great in some instances, but tends to drag in others. In addition to that, I had a couple of issues with the last scene. I won't give it away, but I really hope they change it for the final release, as it seemed really anti-climactic after the journey we've been through with these characters. It was definitely a work in progress though, so I'm sure a lot of these problems will be smoothed out when it eventually hits theaters. So even though it has a lot of rough edges in its current form, I think this film has the potential to be a truly great stoner comedy, and I have no idea what to expect from DGG after this! Call me Tullius Octopus.
