An unfortunate reflection of our culture.

Rating: 5/10 (17 August 2008)

Having gone to the midnight showing with a friend, I was as excited as the rest of the country in witnessing what should have been the greatest comedy of the year to every young adult in the audience. Suffice it to say I was very disappointed. The movie turned out to be one big running "Bro" gag after another.
That being said, let's evaluate the plot of the movie. The basic idea of the film is based around a pothead Dale Denton ( Seth Rogen ) who serves court orders and his dealer Saul Silver ( James Franco). Denton, while finding one of his court orders targets Ted Jones ( Gary Cole ) witnesses the shooting of an Asian drug dealer at Jones's very residence! Panicking, he backs into a corrupt cop's car, into another car and then speeds off in a very amusing scene. From this point on, Denton and the man whose home he returns to, Silver, are forced to go on the run from an insanely persistent drug lord and his thugs who want nothing more than to kill Dale Denton for witnessing the crime. NONE of that is bad whatsoever. It is a simplistic plot that fits a frame perfectly for an action/comedy flick.
It is unfortunate that one of the main reasons I mark this film down is for Seth Rogan's performance. Granted, he has always been a popular actor for "Bro" crowds, but this is a new low. NONE of his material was amusing. His character was virtually the same as his character in Knocked Up, with the only difference being that he stays in his life of pot smoking in the conclusion of this film whereas in Knocked Up he changes his lifestyle. Most of the jokes that Dale Denton is privy too are idiotic even for an Apatow film. His slapstick and mannerisms did more to degrade this film's quality than even the sad fact that this movie will probably convince the American public that marijuana is the way to go in life. And no, I am not anti-weed.
As for how the plot is actually carried out, here is another mark down. It progresses in a linear fashion ( trying to find the man responsible for ratting them out to Ted Jones ) and then suddenly flops into a barrage of stupid scenes involving Denton's underage girlfriend and her absurd father. To make matters worse, the comedy that is used throughout the majority of the film to progress the story is as stale as Seth Rogan's performance.
All of that out in the open, I should mention I have NEVER been a fan of James Franco. I will not deny, he was Phenomenal in this film. Every poor line from Seth Rogan and Danny McBride ( actor who played Red ) was redeemed by his performance as Saul Silver. His character, his portrayal and the comedy that ensues was a riot. Most of his lines made me want to wet myself laughing. If any award should be given out for lead actor, it should be given to James Franco.
Gary Cole gave a great performance as a whack bad guy in this film as well, and I would be lying if I said he in any way took away from this film. It is unfortunate that his talents, as well as the talents of James Franco, had to be wasted on this production.
The third character meant to be a protagonist in a certain sense is Red (Danny Mcbride). Unfortunately, I would argue that his character was as worthless as Denton. Every line from his mouth was one bad comedy cliché' after another that we've all heard over and over again from different films. The pathetic white wanna be thug acting like his life is greater than it is can be seen in films like Waiting ( Andy Milonakes ). Granted, it was amusing when Red in all rights should have died early in the movie and kept returning, but eventually you have to wonder why he's allowed to keep living.
What the film lacked in value to the comedy world it also failed to make up for in substance. There was no great lesson or revelation that the viewer was to experience at the end of the film as in more contemporary modern films, nor was there a moment when the protagonist learned his mistakes and made up for them in years to come (Knocked Up, 40 Year Old Virgin, Waiting). Perhaps the filmmakers were trying to be different in this regard, but unfortunately it did not redeem the movie. I had heard Olivia Thirlby ( Juno, The Whackness) was to be in the film.. maybe the extras on the DVD will have her and perhaps offer more substance into the film, who knows.
This was a long critique and for that I apologize. If you must walk away with anything from this review, then let it be this: If you want to see James Franco give a memorable performance, this film is for you. But I caution that his acting aside, this is one of those films that makes me weep for how idiotic and simplistic our culture is becoming-- that, and every "Bro" in your town will be there, so be ready for that hell when you get there.
5/10 ONLY for James Franco and Gary Cole.