MOVIE REVIEW - Harold and Kumar

Look out! Here come Harold and Kumar again, and this time they're in big trouble with the Federal Government as suspected terrorists!

John Cho and Kal Penn reprise their roles as Harold and Kumar respectively again, in Escape from Guantanamo Bay. To say the Harold and Kumar movies are an acquired taste is putting it mildly. The last H&K flick in 2004 was wildly popular and there was much anticipation building from thier fans for this one. But at the box office over the weekend it fell short.

These kind of movies are really tough to review. They are not supposed to be good, so there is no real attempt to make critics take notice. These kind of movies are supposed to make money, and the do...lots of money. These flicks go big at the box office usually, and then take off again on cable and rentals. So how do you review H&K flicks?

Think back to Animal House, Porky's, then later American Pie, and others. H&K are nothing new at all. It's just rehashed old jokes (and some new) with a larger envolope to push. Lot's of recreational drug usage, terrible language, naked people, and just a hint of real vulgarity, and there walla...there you go. Escape From Guantanamo Bay.

You know Cho and Penn are certainly like able enough as actors, and the character ideas are funny. But sadly, they may seem cutting edge but their not. Cheech and Chong were doing this bit 30 years ago, but new generations have new hero's and there's nothing wrong with that. Funny here though, with the weekend take for this so poor it seems either they waited too long for another installment, or the fans just thought that the last one was sufficient. Tough to tell.

One more thing, when you make a flick that's going to be really on the edge of any taste at all, and push the envelope as hard as you can it better be funny. But it's not, and that's the shame here. Movie goers don't mind edgy, but 8 bucks for not funny is a very different story.

H&K is rated R no doubt, and it's not for everyone to be sure. In the grand scheme of things harmless, we all saw Porky's, Animal House and American Pie, and we're just fine.