ACTUALLY, IT DEFINITELY CONTAINS SPOILERS: I'm totally with Greensider. This is no wacky, lighthearted romp like H&K or "Dude, Where's My Car?" I assure you, this is an anti-pot movie, one that is way more insidious than "Requiem for a Dream" or other, more obviously serious-minded message films. Do not be fooled by the marketing. Anna Faris' character is the worst kind of stoner: Selfish, thoughtless and irresponsible. Even before she greedily devours an entire plate of her roommates' cupcakes, she has been doing nothing but successfully lighting her bong for what seems like months. Throughout her "misadventures", we get tidbits of info on just how Jane wound up in this mess--by spending recklessly, borrowing money with no intention of repaying, continuously IOUing her dealer, failing to pay important bills, and basically sitting around her apartment for weeks on end. As a responsible stoner might say: Not cool. During the first half of the movie, Jane loses/destroys so much mary jane that it seems impossible that she could ever repair the damage to all the people she's screwed over. MAJOR SPOILER WARNING: She doesn't. Not only does she completely fail to remedy the situation, she also manages to ruin an extremely valuable (and, no doubt, irreplaceable) historical artifact. The film's conclusion depicts her performing community service in a state suggesting the cannabis cupcakes have still not left her system (either that, or she's actually brain damaged at this point). Added to which, the movie's portrayal of stoned behavior recycles all the usual clichés; some true, some untrue. Anna Faris is someone I normally like, but this script did her no favors. I'm mostly angry because of how misleading the DVD cover design and copy are. Yes, it's played for laughs, but that doesn't mean it's funny--it's simply depressing.
Review of Smiley Face
