Man, I genuinely love Apatow/Rogen/Rudd/Hill etc etc films. I really do. A group of supremely gifted comics working in front and behind the screen producing gem after gem, what could be better? Pineapple Express is the latest in a very long line of Apatow-produced movies which can be considered to have started proper with 40 Year Old Virgin, progressing through Knocked Up, Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall and now Pineapple Express. While other films like Anchorman, Walk Hard, Drillbit Taylor and Step Brothers could be considered part of his pantheon, they belong to a different subset and lack the easygoing charm of their cousins. While they are surprisingly, though genuinely, critically acclaimed I walked into Pineapple Express having read some of the best previews yet.
I walked out a little disappointed. Let me clarify this by saying I was in no way displeased with the film itself, it�s definitely above average, the performances aren�t bad at all and I had some hearty belly-laughs at times. I was just expecting to be blown away at first viewing, like I was with Superbad and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. The easygoing charm I talked about was in full swing there, yielding some unforgettable moments and some outrageously unexpected yet surprisingly witty comedy. In Pineapple Express those moments came in dribs and drabs. Director David Gordon Green often seems to miss the point of what he�s filming, and the tone certain scenes evoked was downright amateurish. A moment in which semi-mean hitman Matheson (Robinson) is hit with a coffee pot and cries is a classic example. The audience didn�t know whether to be sorry for him or laugh at a big scary bloke crying like a little girl. It was oddly unsettling and out of place.
A lot of the time while watching I found myself drawing parallels between this film and the infinitely superior Hot Fuzz. Both are buddy-buddy movies which are first and foremost comic in nature, yet take a decidedly vicious turn towards the end and become an entirely different kettle of fish. While Hot Fuzz walked this tightrope perfectly Pineapple Express found itself not at all sure what it was supposed to be and the often graphic violence jarred harshly with the otherwise jovial nature of stoner leads Rogen and Franco. Franco�s performance is quite memorable, and I agree with Slate�s Dana Stevens that he�s a �a great character actor trapped in a leading man's body�. I�d never liked him before this, in anything, but he was the most endearing character in the film and I genuinely felt for him. The fact that he reminded me of my old college roomie Graham is no doubt responsible for that though. Rogen meanwhile is simple Rogen, no more no less. He will have to broaden his range if this is not to be the gang�s swansong. |
