Evan Sims

Pineapple Express

I’m a huge fan of Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen’s films. Anchorman? Classic. Superbad? Awesome. Step Brothers? Pretty damn great. The duo have proven themselves to be true grandmasters in the mysterious and forbidden art of making me pee my pants. I get as giddy as a little school girl when a new film is released, and rarely am I disappointed when I exit the theater. Pineapple Express was no exception, and indeed it may be my favorite film from the guys so far.

So, what’s the premise? Dale Denton (played by Rogen) is a mild mannered process server with an affinity for weed, and an apparent self esteem problem. Bored by his job and stressed about his girlfriend (a high school student, no less), Denton turns to his dealer Saul Silver (James Franco) for some relief. Denton clearly isn’t a fan of the guy, but Saul thinks the world of him so he gives him a “exclusive sneak peek” at a new crop his supplier calls Pineapple Express. One thing leads to the next, and in a twist of divine irony, Denton is unwittingly sent to serve papers to Saul’s source (Ted Jones, played by Gary Cole), where he is the unfortunate witness to a murder. In a panic, Denton drops his joint of the rare Pineapple Express, leading Jones and his cohorts straight back to Saul and Denton.

Most of the film revolves around Dale and Saul fleeing from certain death, getting stoned out of their heads and trying to get out of the murderous predicament their in. Throw in a Chinese drug cartel, an impending drug war, a cop on the villain’s payroll and an abandoned military experimentation facility and you’ve got yourself Pineapple Express.

It’s decidedly an action-comedy flick with a strong “buddy movie” undertone, and at it’s core deals with Dale’s self esteem and the relationship between Dale and Saul… and it does it wonderfully. To be honest, I’m not a fan of stoner films. Most films either try to politicize the issue too much, or just make the topic so tedious that it ends up being painful to watch. Leave it to these guys to make one that I not only didn’t loathe, but actually loved.

Rogen, as always, is hilarious in his part. The man is a great comedy actor, without question. I think what makes Rogen great is that even he’s so normal and so familiar, it’s like watching a friend you know on screen. He’s also somehow managed to make his characters throughout his films unique enough that you don’t feel like you’re watching the same guy over and over again.

When I saw the first Express trailer, I was surprised to see Franco cast for the second-chair role. He just never came off as a comedy actor type to me. It wasn’t until I caught some of his stuff over on Funny or Die that I realized how great he was for the part. Franco really elevated the role of Saul from a fairly uninspired stoner archetype to a character you care about, and even as a secondary character feels just as important as Rogen’s Dale. The duo did an awesome job, and I’m not sure Pineapple Express would have been half as enjoyable with anyone else cast in those parts.

I give it a 4.5/5 — — Great acting, hilarious story, top notch comedy. What more do you want?