Pineapple Express

The latest movie from the Apatow clan is entitled "Pineapple Express" and it stars James Franco and that lovable lump, Seth Rogen. Pineapple is a movie that blends two venerable genres: the action film and the stoner movie. Both are about as American as apple pie and baseball. Anyways, this movie is about the bond between subpoena officer/pothead named Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) and his lovable, easygoing potdealer (also alliteratively) named Saul Silver (James Franco). Basically, Dale witnesses a murder while smoking some high-quality roach called "Pineapple Express". Dale makes a racket while driving away and drops his joint. The drug-dealer played by Gary Cole (Lumbergh from OfficeSpace!) picks up the joint, takes a pull, and identifies the weed as Pineapple Express, which traces it back to Saul. What follows is weed-induced hijinks and hilarity as Saul and Dale try to evade the drug-dealers.

Most of the humor is hit-and-miss I must say, but I thought the action parts worked quite well. Picture the violence of a hilariously bad zombie movie, heavy on the slapstick. It may sound cheesy, but it is an approach that works to complement the humor perfectly. The camaraderie between the two inept drug-dealers chasing Saul and Dale has to be one of the highlights of the movie, along with Danny McBride's supporting role as Red. Although Seth Rogen is strictly serviceable in the film, I personally believe that James Franco stole the show. He was consistently hilarious with his laidback, affable potdealer character. He and Seth Rogen have great chemistry and I hope to see Franco in more roles in the future.

Although I thought this movie fell short of the last Apatow production I saw (Forgetting Sarah Marshall), I was still entertained. The movie is only 1 hour and 45 minutes, which means there is very little lag time from scene to scene. The direction is reminiscent more of an indie film than a blockbuster comedy, which I found to be a refreshing approach. Lastly, the ending has to be one of the most bromantic moments in film history, seriously you expect the guys to start making out at the end of it. In short, Pineapple Express is worth watching in theatres and will sate Apatow fans until the next time he sits in the directing chair.