Pineapple Express

[BillBrasky]

I saw this last night and while overall I enjoyed it, I didn't think it was up to the level of "Superbad" or even "Knocked Up" really. Your mileage may vary on this, of course; I think that the more you can personally relate to this particular subject matter, the more you'll probably enjoy the movie, if you know what I mean. The first half of the movie was pretty funny, but then in the second half it takes a darker tone and becomes more of an action movie (and make no mistake, the action/car chase scenes were pretty well done; David Gordon Green did a good job of directing). I just felt like they got a little bogged down with that near the end of the movie and sort of abandoned the comedy a little bit.

The highlight of the movie for me was Danny McBride, who continues to impress; his character "Red" was pretty hilarious. Craig Robinson from "The Office" was also pretty funny. I kind of wanted to like this movie a little more than I ended up actually liking it, but it had enough funny parts that I'm looking forward to seeing it again.

They're doing a lot of screenings for this movie before it opens; check this site to see if they're doing any in your area.

[nadsat droog]

I'm disappointed that you were disappointed, Brasky.

I've heard a lot of people recently, in real life and on the internet, say that they just don't like Seth Rogen. I'll admit he is somewhat one-noteish, but I don't find that note unbearable yet.

When do you get to see Step Brothers?

[dan telfer]

I am very done with stoner movies. It's become a shortcut for making a character sympathetic when most of their other actions are annoying.

This movie looks like it will be funny, but hilarious if you're high.

[BillBrasky]

When do you get to see Step Brothers?

Tonight.

[waxpop]

Your review makes me sad. My expectations might be a little high (blergh) for this one. I am still psyched to see it, though.

[RegularKarate]

My expectations are low because the trailer is so good. There's no way the movie can live up to the trailer.

[Scratch Lightning]

I'm the opposite. I really want to look forward to this movie, but there hasn't been one moment in any trailer I've seen that I've found even remotely funny. I'm hoping they're saving all the edgier stuff for the movie itself.

[yumitree]

my father is more excited for this movie than he is for step brothers.

[Scratch Lightning]

The Stepbrothers trailer is great by comparison. Will Ferrell's tone when he says "I'm burying you" kills me every single time.

[Toddler]

I saw a really early test screening late last year, and I too had high expectations. Now, maybe they have changed parts since the cut I saw, but overall Brasky is right on with his comments. The movie is consistently hilarious, especially in a full theater of Apatow fans, but the lack of commitment to story and characters kills the film as a whole. Danny McBride steals the show, as per usual, and Rogen, Robinson, and the Green Lantern Jr. are all really good(though Gary Cole and Rosie Perez were wasted). David Gordon Green is one of my favorite filmmakers, I've seen all of his films, but Green directing Pineapple Express reminds me of Ang Lee directing the Hulk: a great director making a movie he shouldn't be making. This movie wants to be a comedy, and then wants to be an over the top action film, a la Hot Fuzz, but in the end just doesn't work as a whole.

Having said all that, I welcome the opportunity to see this movie again just for all of the laughs. The question is, do great laughs alone make a good movie?

[Fentmore]

Having said all that, I welcome the opportunity to see this movie again just for all of the laughs. The question is, do great laughs alone make a good movie?

Airplane!

Really looking forward to Express.

[JKwac]

I saw a preview earlier this week, and I thought it was really great. And I'm not a stoner! In fact, I didn't think the pot stuff was crucial at all to my enjoyment of the movie. For me, it was the combination of really funny performances/jokes with intense action scenes that won me over. I'll have to see it again before I make any strong statements, but I want to say that it's my favorite Apatow movie.

[smartbunny]

The Stepbrothers trailer is great by comparison. Will Ferrell's tone when he says "I'm burying you" kills me every single time.

For me it's, "He'll NEVER know you're gone!"

[eponymous]

My expectations are low because the trailer is so good. There's no way the movie can live up to the trailer.

My expectations are low because this post is so good. There's no way the trailer can live up to this post.

[Scratch Lightning]

For me it's, "He'll NEVER know you're gone!"

They're both great. I basically plan on seeing the movie for that scene (even though it's probably better in the trailer edit).

[Famous Police Dog]

We have a thread for that movie!

[metal2000]

For anyone in Canada who wants to go to a screening of Pineapple Express, we're doing them all over the country on July 30th and 31st.

http://www.showbizmonkeys.com/contests.php?id=77

We got tons of passes in each city (they're our own screenings), so if you live in any of them and enter, the chances of you winning are good.

[BillBrasky]

Here's the panel for "Pineapple Express" from Comic-Con 2008, including a cameo by the "Human Giant" guys during the Q&A:

[FF Woodycooks]

My expectations are low because the trailer is so good. There's no way the movie can live up to the trailer.

I came to post this. The trailer just synthesizes the whole thing too perfectly.

Also, listening to Rogan talk to Terry Gross on NPR about weed the other day in the car was so jarring. The day before I'd been listening to Chinua Achebe in the same timeslot.

[mcpiranhas]

YESSS. I saw this at midnight and it was everything I hoped it would be. Hilarious, violent, and weird. The trailer scenes are actually even better in context, and in retrospect I appreciate it even more for not spoiling any of the best sequences. Thanks to David Gordon Green, it has lots of lengthy, casual dialog scenes to balance the completely insane action, and the result pretty much covers everything I could ever want in a comedy, not to mention things I had no idea I wanted, like James Franco, who's by far the best part of the movie. I seriously liked this even better than Dark Knight and WALL-E.

I should probably counteract all this hyperbole by saying that I geeked out just as much over Superbad, so if you didn't like that, I really don't think this would change your mind about any of these guys.