"How High"
Directed by Jesse Dylan.
Written by Dustin Abraham.
Starring Method Man and Redman.
Release Year: 2001
Review Date: 12/31/01 Folks--
Well, "The Drive for 75" is over, and I saw
my 75th film of the year in theaters today. Really, the choice was
simple, since the only movie that I haven't seen at the six theaters
within walking distance of my house was "How High"...and, I thought
to myself, I want to end the year watching a college comedy starring
blunt-smokin' rap stars!
Actually, I had really wanted to see this
movie when it came out two weeks ago, but with all of the
Oscar-worthy fare that has come out recently, I made those other
films a priority. See, I love Method Man and Redman, the two stars
of "How High", but for their musical ability. But, this is their
first film and the preview for it was pretty funny, so I thought it
had to be worth checking out.
While the film isn't really that great, and
features more gross-out humor than I have seen in a flick in a while
(this one rivals "Scary Movie" in its volume of questionable
scenes), it does have its moments. Two guys that are stuck in
community college, Silas (Method Man) and Jamal (Redman), decide to
make something of their lives and go to a four-year university.
After cheating on their SAT-style entrance exams with the help of a
weed-induced vision of a ghost, they get perfect scores and decide
that Harvard will be the place to further their education...which
essentially is to grow the best pot on campus and come up with a
scientific breakthrough for the use of their special blunt potion.
Whatever. You knew coming into this that
the plot for this film was going to suck. But, what doesn't suck
are the two leads, and the hip-hoppers are actually pretty good in
front of the camera, especially Method Man. As this is their first
feature film, these two guys will show up in more films in the
future, and they act infinitely better than 95% of the other cast
members who are right out of central casting. Save for cameos by
the hilarious Fred Willard (the dog show play-by-play man in
"Best
in Show") and Hector Elizondo as a crew coach that starts wearing
Jamal's "original" clothing line, BUFU (obviously a play on
real-life clothing line FUBU), the rest of this cast is shit.
But there are three or four laugh-out-loud
scenes and a great soundtrack, featuring an on-screen performance by
world-famous bluntmen Cypress Hill. "How High" is mostly
forgettable, but the performances by Meth and Redman will get them
more work next year.
Rating: Rental
Comments? Drop me a line at
justin@bellviewmovies.com.
Bellview Rating System:
"Opening Weekend": This is
the highest rating a movie can receive. Reserved for movies that
exhibit the highest level of acting, plot, character development,
setting...or Salma Hayek. Not necessarily in that order.
"$X.XX Show": This price
changes each year due to the inflation of movie prices; currently,
it is the $9.50 Show. While not technically perfect, this is a
movie that will still entertain you at a very high level.
"Undercover Brother" falls into this category; it's no "Casablanca",
but you'll have a great time watching. The $9.50 Show won't win any
Oscars, but you'll be quoting lines from the thing for ages (see
"Office Space").
"Matinee": An average movie
that merits no more than a $6.50 viewing at your local theater.
Seeing it for less than $9.50 will make you feel a lot better about
yourself. A movie like "Blue Crush" fits this category; you leave
the theater saying "That wasn't too bad...man, did you see that
Lakers game last night?"
"Rental": This rating
indicates a movie that you see in the previews and say to your
friend, "I'll be sure to miss that one." Mostly forgettable, you
couldn't lose too much by going to Hollywood Video and paying $3 to
watch it with your sig other, but you would only do that if the
video store was out of copies of "Ronin." If you can, see this
movie for free. This is what your TV Guide would give "one and a
half stars."
"Hard Vice": This rating is
the bottom of the barrel. A movie that only six other human beings
have witnessed, this is the worst movie I have ever seen. A Shannon
Tweed "thriller," it is so bad as to be funny during almost every
one of its 84 minutes, and includes the worst ending ever put into a
movie. Marginally worse than "Cabin Boy", "The Avengers" or
"Leonard, Part 6", this rating means that you should avoid this
movie at all costs, or no costs, EVEN IF YOU CAN SEE IT FOR FREE!
(Warning: strong profanity will be used in all reviews of "Hard
Vice"-rated movies.)