Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay

Though sequels usually have a hard time measuring up to the first movie, I was expecting at least a few laughs from 'Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay'. I ended up wincing and cringing more than anything. This is among the worst movies of the year that I have seen. Sure I was expecting crudeness and vulgarity but this one reaches a new level and it is more of those things than funny. Add to that, the none-gross or pornographic scenes were plain boring. 'Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay' takes off where 'Harold and Kumar Go To White Palace' end. John Cho and Kal Penn reprise their roles and pretty much walk the same line but I found them less funnier here. Though one good thing that comes out of the film is that it implies how ignorant Americans have become towards other cultures since 9/11 and how they are quick to judge based on stereotype. The only sequences that I found amusing were the airport check-in scene and the sequence in the airbus (with the suspecting old lady). However, this is too bad of a film for me to talk much more about.

First, let me say I was a big fan of the first Harold and Kumar film.

This sequel has none of the witty elements of the first film. The movie seemed like a weak student film with novice acting, poor direction, and no continuity (forget about how bad the writing was for this movie - here is a tip to the writers; that thing about smoking weed to get creativity, it is a myth so you might want to put the bong down next time). If this was the writer directors first film, it would surely be their last because it was so bad. Luckily, I didn't pay to see this junk and even so I feel like I should ask for money back! Don't say I didn't warn you......

First let me say this movie was hilarious. Definitely a stoner movie, and as funny as the first. Actually, it may be funnier. Like most sequels they don't usually top the first one, and in most cases rehash the same old jokes. The story beings hours after their "White Castle" gorging ("Prepare to gorge yourself"),and after mistaking a "bong" for a "bomb", on their way to Amsterdam, Harold & Kumar are sent to Guantanmo Bay, and a chain reaction of foolishness and tomfoolery ensues. Lots of cameo's in this one, so you movie lovers keep an eye out. See if you can spot Freakshow from "White Castle" in a completely reversed role. If you're a fan of the first one, you will absolutely love "Guantanamo Bay." Go Roldy!! Go Kumi!!

For some reason I actually found the first film pretty enjoyable and it had enough laughs for me to justify coming back to the second film. The title made me think that the story would also lend itself to be a fairly one-sided p1ss-take of the US handling of the terrorism issue and I hoped this would add a sharp element to the otherwise stoner comedy. That the film opens with Kumar taking a dump and then ejaculating up over himself amazingly did not dissuade me from this belief. However as the film went on I realised that there would be nothing particularly smart about this film and that it is all about the stoner comedy as per the first film - which, like I said, I enjoyed.

Sadly though the second film falls way short of the mark in terms of laughs. In terms of being graphic, crude and obvious it is right on point though, but the problem is that little of this material is funny when it comes to execution. So in theory the scene with George Bush (one of the worst impersonators of him I've seen) could have been barbed and cutting, instead is just basic and surprisingly lazy. In fact "lazy" is a word that sprung to mind several times throughout the film mainly because of the lack of creativity within it and also the amount of box ticking. The lavatorial humour, the excessive nudity and usual homophobia (except of course when it comes to girls) is all present but only appears to be there so that the target audience can tick them off - at very least they linger long after the joke is made. In terms of playing with stereotypes and racial profiling it does offer more and there is a certain delight in seeing so many groups generalised and slandered, however again it is hard not to feel more could have been made of it. Maybe I'm expecting too much but there was opportunity for satire to be slipped in here but it never came and it is a lesser film for its absence.

It did still make me laugh but way too infrequently for me to enjoy as a comedy even if it does have really enjoyable hits. As before the sheer juxtaposition of Neil Patrick Harris' public image with that presented in these films makes his parts easy to enjoy, even if it is a bit too "easy" on this occasion and just feels like a retread of the first film. Cho and Penn make engaging leads and they play well to the material - that much of it isn't that good is not down to their performances, if anything they deserved better. The support cast features a wonderfully daft turn from Corddy but mostly just minor roles doing the basics.

Harold & Kumar 2 may suggest a political edge with its title but ultimately it is not much more than a repeat of the first film but with increased nudity and crudity but decreased laughter rate and entertainment value. It will probably still please teenage boys with the basics but offers little to a wider audience.

I loved the first one, and couldn't wait to see the next one. Most of its humor is either racial, sexual, or drug-related, so if you aren't into that, steer clear of this one. If you can appreciate that type of humor you will be laughing throughout the entire movie. It is also filled with many ridiculous "wtf" funny moments, reminiscent of the cheetah scene from the last movie. The movie itself isn't offensive, but a lot of the characters are, and Neil Patrick Harris returns once again and really stole the show for me. Some of the jokes are derived from the first movie, so I really recommend seeing the first one before you see this to get acquainted with the characters. So go grab some friends and get ready to laugh, one of the funniest movies of the year!