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Harold and Kumar - anyone?

batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
edited April 2008 in Strut Central
i havent seen it yet.

  Comments

  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    Not worth it. The first one had its moments but this second one is just a lot of flat jokes, alas.
  • batmonbatmon 27,574 Posts
    Not worth it. The first one had its moments but this second one is just a lot of flat jokes, alas.

    Dag. What if ur were stoned at home w/ the DVD?
  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    Dunno how to call that one. But really, it just wasn't as funny. They re-use a few jokes and the comic timing seemed off in more than a few scenes. It wasn't straight wack for a stoner/gross-out flick but I kind of wish I went to go see "Forgeting Sarah Marshall" instead.

    That said, I'm proud that Asian Americans have made it into Hollywood far enough that we too, can now make mediocre mainstream fare.
  • Controller_7Controller_7 4,052 Posts
    I watched the first one and thought "man, this is Fuckin' terrible" and started to love it halfway through. I watched it again and loved it even more. I like that they took it over the top and just kept going. Extreme kayaking is one of the funniest things ever caught on tape.

    I would love for the second one to be as good, but I have doubts. I will wait for the dvd and probably enjoy it after everyone says it sucks. My expectations will be low and I'll think "this is pretty good actually."
  • nzshadownzshadow 5,518 Posts
    I work for a comedy company.

    The Harold and Kumar crew flew out here to film the DVD extras for the new flick.

    Basically the premise is 'what if they made it to Amsterdam'.

    99% of the material was shot at my work and co-stars all the actors i work with.

    Should be funny to see that.

    I have not seen either film BTW.
  • keithvanhornkeithvanhorn 3,855 Posts
    it just wasn't as funny.


    first one was much better. there are some hysterical scenes but there equally as many awkward and lame scenes. i thought the first one was genius, so to me, its still worth the money to see Guantanamo Bay in the theater. if you weren't as impressed with White Castle, i'd wait for the dvd.
  • NateBizzoNateBizzo 2,328 Posts
    This movie was hilarious.


    It made me laugh out loud through-out.
  • gambitgambit 906 Posts
    That said, I'm proud that Asian Americans have made it into Hollywood far enough that we too, can now make mediocre mainstream fare.
    I remember when the first one came out I was so bothered by the schlocky nature of the movie. I mean, Kal Penn was only known for his role in the Van Wilder flick at the time. His role as Taj was fairly Sambo-ish, considering the dude doesn't speak like that in real life (yeah, I get it - it's called "acting" - I understand the FOB dissing too). Considering that though only made it worse, because I figured American cinema had learned its lesson historically by abusing racial stereotypes in films.

    But... once my Asian buddies were telling me how funny it was, my disposition slowly dissipated. It seemed many of them were just happy to see Asian actors as the stars. Who am I to tell them they should be kind of bothered by it?

    So yeah... I don't get what's to be proud of, but I don't think I'd really understand it if I were told. Then again, I guess I was just hoping for too much. I just wanted to see one non-white nationality just be funny without needing to play up the race factor.
  • RAJRAJ tenacious local 7,782 Posts
    These movies make me laugh -- plain and simple. I still find new things in the first one every time I watch. Unlike movies like Superbad which I think fall flat after the first couple times.
  • PonyPony 2,283 Posts
    This scene is so classic...

  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    That said, I'm proud that Asian Americans have made it into Hollywood far enough that we too, can now make mediocre mainstream fare.
    I remember when the first one came out I was so bothered by the schlocky nature of the movie. I mean, Kal Penn was only known for his role in the Van Wilder flick at the time. His role as Taj was fairly Sambo-ish, considering the dude doesn't speak like that in real life (yeah, I get it - it's called "acting" - I understand the FOB dissing too). Considering that though only made it worse, because I figured American cinema had learned its lesson historically by abusing racial stereotypes in films.


    But... once my Asian buddies were telling me how funny it was, my disposition slowly dissipated. It seemed many of them were just happy to see Asian actors as the stars. Who am I to tell them they should be kind of bothered by it?

    So yeah... I don't get what's to be proud of, but I don't think I'd really understand it if I were told. Then again, I guess I was just hoping for too much. I just wanted to see one non-white nationality just be funny without needing to play up the race factor.

    Well, I was being a little bit sarcastic of course. I wouldn't call it 'pride'. I do think it's a symbolic milestone...you simply do not see very many Asian American-lead films of any stripes and most of what has been out there has been uneven in terms of quality (to say nothing about market viability). That H&K has legit legs as a franchise is kind of extraordinary though it has less to do with race and more to do with modernizing the stoner film. That said, race is both NOT an issue and at the heart of the series - a lot of the film is about performing outside of stereotype while also acknowledging stereotype.

    But in these films, a lot of the humor has nothing to do with race so you are getting what you're asking for. Kumar going doggy on a giant bag of weed (new film) has nothing do with his ethnicity. (Alas, it's also not a particularly funny scene since the joke's old now).
  • faux_rillzfaux_rillz 14,343 Posts
    To quote the one dolo_yeung, these movies are for the hard of balling; nobody with the slightest amount of swag would ever watch them voluntarily.
  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    To quote the one dolo_yeung, these movies are for the hard of balling; nobody with the slightest amount of swag would ever watch them voluntarily.

    Likewise - people who are into stoner films (or pondering the fate of Asian American popular media) - have little use for swag.
  • Tonearm_RobberyTonearm_Robbery 699 Posts
    Seriously?

    Damn, I held you guys in such high regards.

    This shit is corny, predictable, and poorly written (i.e. lazy) with Lowest Common Denominator in mind.

    Thinning the heard, I guess.
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    i like the first one a lot and i always get the theme song stuck in my head. im prolly gon wait for the dvd but i dont know if it stays hot like this i might just have to go to the theatre.

    also, anyone seeing this huge fire?
  • grandpa_shiggrandpa_shig 5,799 Posts
    oh wait. the fire went away. there was a huge fire in LA or it looked like a huge fire but its too hot to go outside and investigate further.
  • ZekeZeke 221 Posts
    Kal Penn is currently teaching 2 courses at U Penn; "Images of Asian Americans in the Media" and "Contemporary American Teen Films." Pretty neat.
  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    Seriously?

    Damn, I held you guys in such high regards.

    This shit is corny, predictable, and poorly written (i.e. lazy) with Lowest Common Denominator in mind.

    Thinning the heard, I guess.

    Yeah, I think all those critiques are dead on.

    IT'S A RUN-OF-THE-MILL STONER COMEDY. Of course it's gonna be LCD.

    No one is saying it's "movie of the year." Or even, you know, "good."
  • gambitgambit 906 Posts
    That said, I'm proud that Asian Americans have made it into Hollywood far enough that we too, can now make mediocre mainstream fare.
    I remember when the first one came out I was so bothered by the schlocky nature of the movie. I mean, Kal Penn was only known for his role in the Van Wilder flick at the time. His role as Taj was fairly Sambo-ish, considering the dude doesn't speak like that in real life (yeah, I get it - it's called "acting" - I understand the FOB dissing too). Considering that though only made it worse, because I figured American cinema had learned its lesson historically by abusing racial stereotypes in films.


    But... once my Asian buddies were telling me how funny it was, my disposition slowly dissipated. It seemed many of them were just happy to see Asian actors as the stars. Who am I to tell them they should be kind of bothered by it?

    So yeah... I don't get what's to be proud of, but I don't think I'd really understand it if I were told. Then again, I guess I was just hoping for too much. I just wanted to see one non-white nationality just be funny without needing to play up the race factor.

    Well, I was being a little bit sarcastic of course. I wouldn't call it 'pride'. I do think it's a symbolic milestone...you simply do not see very many Asian American-lead films of any stripes and most of what has been out there has been uneven in terms of quality (to say nothing about market viability). That H&K has legit legs as a franchise is kind of extraordinary though it has less to do with race and more to do with modernizing the stoner film. That said, race is both NOT an issue and at the heart of the series - a lot of the film is about performing outside of stereotype while also acknowledging stereotype.

    But in these films, a lot of the humor has nothing to do with race so you are getting what you're asking for. Kumar going doggy on a giant bag of weed (new film) has nothing do with his ethnicity. (Alas, it's also not a particularly funny scene since the joke's old now).
    I wasn't really saying race was at the heart of the matter. I was just lamenting on how I felt when the movie came out. I still haven't really caught either movie in its entirety yet, so I really can't comment on the humor outside of what I saw in the beginning of the first movie.
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