"Why does everything has to be a huge argument with you, man?”
"Because this is America, dude, and as long as I have my freedom of speech, no one's going to shut me up!"
"Because this is America, dude, and as long as I have my freedom of speech, no one's going to shut me up!"
The Story:
Fresh off of downing more White Castle than is fit for human consumption, Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) head off to Amsterdam to track down the former’s beloved Maria (Paula Garces, aka that hot girl in the elevator from the first movie). At the airport, the two bump into Vanessa (Danneel Harris), an old flame of Kumar’s who is now engaged to Colton (Eric Graham). Though Kumar is somewhat shaken by this news, the allure of all that weed in Amsterdam gets him on the plane anyway. Because they’re minorities, the two are suspected to be terrorists by an old lady on the plane; they don’t help their case when Kumar sneaks a “smokeless bong” onto the plane, which is mistaken for a bomb. The two are swiftly apprehended and tossed into Guantanamo Bay; though their stay is short-lived, they must embark on a cross-country journey to clear their names and win back the love of Kumar’s life.
The Review:
The Review:
In my review of the original Harold and Kumar, I said that few films could match that film’s non-sequitur madness. It follows, then, that only this smoked-out duo could manage to not only match their first epic journey, but also completely outdo it with an even more outrageous second outing. Their whirlwind tour through the American southeast is, quite simply, some of the funniest stuff ever committed to film. I would go so far as to declare Escape from Guantanamo Bay to be easily the funniest film of the past decade and certainly one of the most side-splitting of all time. Raunchy, farcical, but, above all, wickedly smart, it’s the perfect update to their ridiculous quest for White Castle.
This sequel mostly unfolds like that film in that our heroes are subjected to series of escalating and raucous events. Their actual escape--which would probably be the funniest part of most movies--comes rather early, and they find themselves escaping the indignity of eating the prison guards’ “cockmeat sandwiches” to the sunny shores of Miami, where they have a buddy throwing a “bottomless party” (‘cause topless parties are passe, plus Raza knows the value of a nice bush). From there, it’s one deranged encounter after another; some have counterparts in the original film, such as a backwoods hillbilly (Jon Reep) with the unexpectedly attractive wife and fancy abode (complete with high speed internet!).
This skewering of expectations and stereotypes is carried over the from the first film, but it almost always goes a step further by capitulating as well. The jokes are sometimes hidden in plain sight; for example, the two hicks jokingly explain away the weird noises in their basement as being an inbred son. That’s humorous enough--everyone suspects most southerners are swimming in a shallow gene pool; however, when a cycloptic monster resembling Sloth from The Goonies actually shows up, that’s hilarious. To be so stupid, this is a pretty sly film. Other episodes, such as in ill-fated encounter with the KKK, reveal that same sort of bawdy, irreverent humor towards race that the original showed, only it’s funnier (because science has proven that nothing is more hilarious than bigots being lit on fire).
However, the biggest target this time out is actually America itself; while the first film stayed quaintly nestled in its sophomoric bed, this one goes ambitious with its satire. Don’t worry--there’s still plenty of dick and fart jokes (in fact, the opening credits are full of them), but the most effective humor is found in the evisceration of the ignorant American stereotype represented by Rob Corddry’s Homeland Security agent. Blatantly racist (he bribes the returning Jews, Goldstein and Rosenberg, with pennies for example) and completely oblivious, he’s probably exactly what the rest of the world sees when they think about our growing American idiocracy. He literally wipes his ass with the Constitution, and will stop at nothing to capture Harold and Kumar, who he convinced are terrorists despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. I don’t think I need to tell you what presidential administration that’s supposed to parallel.
But despite being so big, the characters don’t get lost, which is most important. Cho and Penn have crafted one of cinema’s more memorable duos in recent memory, as they’re a perfect update of Cheech and Chong. Any pair of stoners could go on a cross-country trip and be funny, but I think few will make you feel for their plight. And these guys earn every bit of empathy for whatever reason, so the personal stakes underpinning the story are felt. Whereas the original eventually was more of Harold’s story in his quest to introduce himself to Maria, this sequel allows us to see more of Kumar, including his romantic side. As he’s definitely the more cavalier of the two (the only thing that ever really seems to bother him is a lack of weed), it’s interesting to see his softness emerge as he attempts to regain Vanessa from the clutches of Colton (who proves to be a perfectly smarmy douche in the 80s tradition). This subplot climaxes in the recitation of one of the corniest poems you’ll ever hear, but it’s so genuinely corny and sappy that you’re shocked that such earnestness somehow festered beneath all of that raunchiness and silliness.
Of course, Harold and Kumar aren’t at their most memorable until they become a trio with the inexplicable return of Neil Patrick Harris. The former TV doctor wanders to save the day, as he’s still going wherever god takes him. In this case, that includes smuggling fugitives across state lines, hallucinating about unicorns, and branding prostitutes at the craziest little whorehouse in Texas. Armed with a bottle of whiskey and a bag of shrooms, he’s still tripping balls and proving to be the enigmatic force that puts these flicks over the top. He also gives a speech that’ll cause you to never look at Hershey’s kisses the same way again.
I’m not exaggerating when I say this movie makes me laugh more so than any other movie I’ve ever seen; the humor is relentless, and I can still remember whole sections of dialogue being drowned out by uproarious laughter in theaters. However, I can also remember the sense of triumph and the fact that a deranged stoner comedy delivered a resonant message in tumultuous times: “You don't have to believe in your government to be a good American. You just have to believe in your country.” That this message is delivered by one of America’s more infamous figures is a stroke of brilliance that speaks to the film’s greatest triumph. Yep, Harold and Kumar are so likeable that they even make George W. Bush seem like less of an asshole. If only fiction were reality; I think it would be a lot more fun to have a president more concerned with smoking up rather than smoking terrorists out of their holes. Actually, that just sounds like the Clinton era. I rest my case. (Brett G.)
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