I freely admit that I sat to watch with expectations that were mixed to low. Probably more than any other variety of storytelling or art, comedy is heavily susceptible to changing tastes and sensibilities. I recognize the stature that Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin have in pop culture, and the parts they have played beyond their iconic shenanigans as a duo, but how much lasting value would their premier film - arguably their most significant stamp on culture at large - have for someone who is not steeped in drug culture, who has never partaken of marijuana or harder recreational substances, and who has no interest in doing so? Could it be that 'Up in smoke' is the type of comedy that is only funny if the viewers themselves are high? It doesn't take long after one presses "play" that the answers reveal themselves, and in my opinion they are, in the latter instance, "far more so than not," and in the former, "essentially none." As far as I'm concerned this is just an exhausting dud.
It's not that the movie is actively, specifically bad - though it is at no few times, with instances of cheap toilet humor, tiresome sex jokes if not outright tawdry raunchiness (including, incredibly, a bit making light of sexual assault), animal cruelty, self-indulgent embellishment by way of music, and more. No, mostly it's just dull, boring, and woefully unfunny. There are some lines, scenes, and gags that represent some measure of wit, and which could have theoretically been fun, but the tone, pacing, and/or comedic timing are usually so laidback that the preponderance of these eighty-six minutes sail past without eliciting any reaction other than a sigh, or a glance at the clock. There's also the matter of how this flick treats law enforcement: I'm all for mocking cops, who are already vacuous, villainous goons in real life, but with that in mind, there is no need to make the police here abject cartoons, and the doing here simply means another loss of potential humor. Elsewhere the script just flounders outright with no comedy in sight. Worst of all is when 'Up in smoke' relies on that exasperating stand-by of the feeble-minded writer who wants to earn a laugh with nothing more than the unsophisticated childishness of "Look at that silly man! Haha! Isn't he so silly?" with no cleverness attached otherwise. Alternatively, this prototypical stoner comedy also provides its own variant, "Look at those people who are high! Haha! They sure are high, aren't they?" It's so hard to care about the vast majority of this title.
Granted, I guess some other facets are adequate. The cast sure do act; if nothing else I appreciate Marin's energy. Some of the music in and of itself is modestly enjoyable; then again, while the riff in climactic tune "Earache my eye" is catchy, the lyrics are trash. Other odds and ends contributed from behind the scenes ably serve their purpose. But what does any of this matter when, far, far more than not, an intended comedy fails to entertain? This came close a few times to earning a laugh, but almost exclusively within about the first third. The number of times that I did, in fact, laugh: twice. A grand total of twice. And this is somehow a revered classic? I guess when all is said and done my thoughts on Cheech and Chong are much the same as my thoughts on recreational drugs. If you like them, good for you; be safe and have fun. I want nothing to do with them. I had poor assumptions about 'Up in smoke' in the first place, but I was completely unprepared for how wholly shallow and asinine this feature was going to be. A few scattered good ideas amount to nothing. For my part I think the value this has to offer is negligible, and I'm flummoxed at how visible it is in pop culture. My staunch recommendation is to altogether avoid this like the lemon it is.
It's not that the movie is actively, specifically bad - though it is at no few times, with instances of cheap toilet humor, tiresome sex jokes if not outright tawdry raunchiness (including, incredibly, a bit making light of sexual assault), animal cruelty, self-indulgent embellishment by way of music, and more. No, mostly it's just dull, boring, and woefully unfunny. There are some lines, scenes, and gags that represent some measure of wit, and which could have theoretically been fun, but the tone, pacing, and/or comedic timing are usually so laidback that the preponderance of these eighty-six minutes sail past without eliciting any reaction other than a sigh, or a glance at the clock. There's also the matter of how this flick treats law enforcement: I'm all for mocking cops, who are already vacuous, villainous goons in real life, but with that in mind, there is no need to make the police here abject cartoons, and the doing here simply means another loss of potential humor. Elsewhere the script just flounders outright with no comedy in sight. Worst of all is when 'Up in smoke' relies on that exasperating stand-by of the feeble-minded writer who wants to earn a laugh with nothing more than the unsophisticated childishness of "Look at that silly man! Haha! Isn't he so silly?" with no cleverness attached otherwise. Alternatively, this prototypical stoner comedy also provides its own variant, "Look at those people who are high! Haha! They sure are high, aren't they?" It's so hard to care about the vast majority of this title.
Granted, I guess some other facets are adequate. The cast sure do act; if nothing else I appreciate Marin's energy. Some of the music in and of itself is modestly enjoyable; then again, while the riff in climactic tune "Earache my eye" is catchy, the lyrics are trash. Other odds and ends contributed from behind the scenes ably serve their purpose. But what does any of this matter when, far, far more than not, an intended comedy fails to entertain? This came close a few times to earning a laugh, but almost exclusively within about the first third. The number of times that I did, in fact, laugh: twice. A grand total of twice. And this is somehow a revered classic? I guess when all is said and done my thoughts on Cheech and Chong are much the same as my thoughts on recreational drugs. If you like them, good for you; be safe and have fun. I want nothing to do with them. I had poor assumptions about 'Up in smoke' in the first place, but I was completely unprepared for how wholly shallow and asinine this feature was going to be. A few scattered good ideas amount to nothing. For my part I think the value this has to offer is negligible, and I'm flummoxed at how visible it is in pop culture. My staunch recommendation is to altogether avoid this like the lemon it is.