Pineapple Express

In lieu of an actual review I thought it was a better idea to recap the entire event, hitting on the most interesting aspects as well as the movie. This is going to be a little scatterbrained and stream of consciousness, so I am sorry for that. I originally intended to take notes but then I got caught up in everything and never picked up the pencil again. There will be no cohesive narrative to this story, just my random thoughts and memories from one of the best movie theater going experiences of my life.

We showed up to the Alamo Drafthouse on Lamar an hour early with the parking lot packed and were greeted to a line of about 200-300 people wrapped around the side of the building and around the corner. I had a bad feeling that the night was going to be filled with waiting in lines. It was then we walked into the theater and realized all we had to do was check and and were placed in a line inside, one made up of about 20 people and right next to the bar.

After only about a 10 minute wait we were ushered down the hall and towards the theater. Before we could enter we had to have security guards wave one of those metal detector wands over our body and Emily's bag was checked. My small video camera and her digital camera were discovered at this point and she was made to return them to the car, my plans to film the post film Q & A were dashed.

Entering the theater I was given a free box of popcorn. I was one of the first in so I had pretty much any choice of seats I wanted, outside of the first two rows of stadium seating, which were reserved. I chose four rows up on the left aisle, knowing the theater would be completely full I wanted to avoid any and all chance that I would have to be seated next to a stranger. Pre-show entertainment was already playing on the screen, a variety of hilarious old anti-drug psa's. One featuring Sonny Bono (a clip is embedded below) and another with the message that its okay to have a few drinks after work, it gives you a sense of accomplishment, just don't get high. Also, one of the stranger trailers I have ever seen, from the Peter Fonda film The Trip (also embedded).





As the theater filled to capacity, and then even past that point (folding chairs were brought out to make new rows along the wall and in the front walkway) AICN'S Harry Knowles made his way to the front to to introduce the film. He mentioned that we were the first audience to see the film outside of test screenings and that he received over 7,000 entries for this contest and that we should feel very lucky we were picked to see the film, I did. He then introduced the special guests, David Gordon Green, Seth Rogen, James Franco, and Danny McBride. Nothing much was said at this point, just thanking everyone for coming out to "get drunk, nibble on some food, and watch our crazy movie." Danny McBride added that if David got up and left during the movie, its because he has diarrhea.

I don't want to get into too many specifics about the rest of the movie, seeing as how it won't be released until August. I will just touch upon my initial thoughts and a few random items I noticed.

• The movie starts with a prologue shot in black and white that really has nothing to do with the rest of the story, I sort of love it for that fact. It features Bill Hader and is very funny. It could be cut from the movie and nothing would be missed but I hope they don't.
• Tim Orr shot this, immediately making this the best looking of all the Judd Apatow produced film, even though it is the least interesting visually of David Gordon Green's films.
• I'm not 100% positive but I don't think David Wingo did the score. At least I can't imagine it was him. It's very synth heavy with a number of 80's songs dominating the soundtrack. Though I didn't recognize it in the movie, I noticed during the closing credits that the film features a song by Shaq.
• Huey Lewis' theme song plays over the closing credits.
• The film is very much in the vein of 80's action/comedies like 48 Hours and Midnight Run, just much funnier and crazy. The third act is out of control.
• Don't go into this worried about the plot, it's basically an excuse to watch Seth Rogen and James Franco run around, be funny, and shoot lots of guns. Their is a bit of heart in this, as it's more about friendship than a drug war.
• This is a career changing performance for James Franco, please find more good comedies to put him in.
• David Gordon Green is really good a filming action scenes.
• This features probably the funniest fight scene I have ever seen, with Rogen and Franco doing battle with Danny McBride in his home.
• Before the fight, Danny McBride delivers what may be the best moment of the film, a monologue about his dead cats birthday.
  
• Craig Robinson is very funny in his limited screen time.
• The trailers only hint at the hilarity and craziness this film offers.

The film ended with rapturous applause. Tim League, the owner of the Alamo Drafthouse, went up front to start a contest. They had five people come up to a table in the front and were given a few small supplies, including a miniature pineapple, and they were to race to see who could make the pineapple into, well, essentially a bong. Of course the dreadlocked gentleman won and was given a signed Pineapple Express poster.

Next, Harry Knowles came back up front to re-introduce the guests. They took their seats and the Q & A followed. This is where my note taking should have come in handy but since I had abandoned that at his point, my memory will have to do. Here are a few of the details I remember:

• Seth Rogen dominated the conversation, with the others only receiving a couple of questions each.
  
• The idea for the film came from Judd Apatow who thought it would be funny to make an action film starring two stoners. Rogen and co-writer Evan Goldberg then just took the idea and put a lot from their lives into the story, such as the drug dealer who always wants to hang out.
  
• Seth Rogen has smoked a lot of weed in his life
• David Gordon Green hopes that this film gives him the opportunity to explore other genres, saying he didn't want to get bored making nothing but dramas.
• James Franco doesn't think much of his early films.
• Most audience members didn't ask relevant questions. With the guests actually skipping over a few to get to the next question.
• Everyone on the set of Knocked Up watched The Foot Fist Way over and over in their trailers.
• Danny McBride and Seth Rogen were both injured in their fight scene.
• There is a real Pineapple Express, its just not what you would expect it to be.

The be honest, I wish the Q & A had gone one longer, I could have watched it all night. Someone from Fantastic Fest filmed the whole thing, so hopefully it will show up online sometime soon. After it was over, the guests made their way to the hallway outside the theater where everyone soon crowded around them. I took a photo of James Franco's back on my phone before making my way to the exit. It was only once I was in the lobby that Emily told me nobody was standing around Danny McBride. I rushed back in to see him standing basically alone on the outskirts of the group. Once he saw Seth Rogen leave, he followed suit. I was about two feet from him and couldn't think of a word to say.

I will definitely be seeing this again once it is released. I need to view it in a normal atmosphere to see if the whole experience clouded my over all judgment of the film, because where it stands now, this is the best film I have seen all year.