Franco makes 'Pineapple' tasty
By Bruce R. Millerbmiller@siouxcityjournal.com | Posted: Sunday, January 04, 2009
James Franco is one of those unsuspecting success stories.
Originally viewed as a brooding leading man, he did fine work in TV movies like "James Dean." But where could he go?
Thanks to producers like Judd Apatow, he has found a nice niche in comedy.
In "Pineapple Express," he plays a mellow drug dealer who becomes part of a "Scarface"-like drama.
He's pulled in when one of his clients (Seth Rogen) witnesses two people kill a third. When the murderers realize they were seen, they send their goons to get him. He goes back to Franco and lets him know they both could be in trouble. In no time at all, they're running all over town. At one point, they even steal a cop car and go on a mad chase.
Bullets fly, cars crash, blood flows.
Considering Rogen and Franco crack jokes routinely, "Pineapple Express" is pretty bitter.
Director David Gordon Green doesn't staunch the blood flow. He lets the bodies stack up and gives his heroes the kind of resilience usually found in superheroes.
Gary Cole (so great as the greasy boss in "Office Space") and Rosie Perez play the killers. But they're pretty wooden (and one-dimensional), making their quest hardly worth following. When they're confronted by the dopers, it's hardly a fair fight.
Green litters his film with neat touches (an opening set in 1937 gives Bill Hader a great cameo) but can't quite pull away from its '70s touchstones. At times, "Pineapple Express" looks like something you might have seen at a drive-in theater. Its action is cheesy; its violence is overt.
Only the two slackers strike a contemporary note. They realize what defines friendship and exhibit the kind of loyalty we haven't seen in decades.
Still, "Pineapple Express" isn't another ride with the kids from "Superbad." This Judd Apatow production has a darker streak that could surprise fans of "Knocked Up," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" and other in-your-face comedies.
Rogen and Franco are a great team. You know what you're getting from Rogen but Franco surprises every time. He's a misunderstood man who'd do anything for someone who calls him "friend."
If he gets an Oscar nomination this year, don't say we didn't warn you.
Also: 'Bangkok'
Nicolas Cage shouldn't have the career he does.
Responsible for some very good films and some truly awful ones, he has lousy taste when it comes to picking projects.
Case in point: "Bangkok Dangerous." Based on the Pang Brothers' 1999 Thai film, the new actioner doesn't come with a Quentin Tarantino spin or a "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" pedigree. It's just another piece of Asian junk, made notable because Cage is in it.
Wearing a greasy black wig, he plays a veteran hit man who goes to Thailand for four jobs. In the process, he meets a beautiful hearing-impaired woman and a feisty young pickpocket. Both become attached to him to some degree, thereby breaking one of the hit man's four codes of conduct.
Before the last man is killed, he botches the other three, too. But "Bangkok Dangerous" is so predictable you don't need a list to know what's coming next.
Also this week:
TV: "Babylon A.D."; "Battlestar Galactica," season four; "Doctor Who"; "Duckman," complete series; "Frisky Dingo," season two; "Mannix," season two; "Transformers," season two; "Tudors," season two; "The Waltons," season eight
Film: "Behind Enemy Lines"; "Disaster Movie"; "Eden Lake"; "Midnight Movie"; "Ping Pong Playa"; "Righteous Kill"; "The Wackness"
Originally viewed as a brooding leading man, he did fine work in TV movies like "James Dean." But where could he go?
Thanks to producers like Judd Apatow, he has found a nice niche in comedy.
In "Pineapple Express," he plays a mellow drug dealer who becomes part of a "Scarface"-like drama.
He's pulled in when one of his clients (Seth Rogen) witnesses two people kill a third. When the murderers realize they were seen, they send their goons to get him. He goes back to Franco and lets him know they both could be in trouble. In no time at all, they're running all over town. At one point, they even steal a cop car and go on a mad chase.
Bullets fly, cars crash, blood flows.
Considering Rogen and Franco crack jokes routinely, "Pineapple Express" is pretty bitter.
Director David Gordon Green doesn't staunch the blood flow. He lets the bodies stack up and gives his heroes the kind of resilience usually found in superheroes.
Gary Cole (so great as the greasy boss in "Office Space") and Rosie Perez play the killers. But they're pretty wooden (and one-dimensional), making their quest hardly worth following. When they're confronted by the dopers, it's hardly a fair fight.
Green litters his film with neat touches (an opening set in 1937 gives Bill Hader a great cameo) but can't quite pull away from its '70s touchstones. At times, "Pineapple Express" looks like something you might have seen at a drive-in theater. Its action is cheesy; its violence is overt.
Only the two slackers strike a contemporary note. They realize what defines friendship and exhibit the kind of loyalty we haven't seen in decades.
Still, "Pineapple Express" isn't another ride with the kids from "Superbad." This Judd Apatow production has a darker streak that could surprise fans of "Knocked Up," "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" and other in-your-face comedies.
Rogen and Franco are a great team. You know what you're getting from Rogen but Franco surprises every time. He's a misunderstood man who'd do anything for someone who calls him "friend."
If he gets an Oscar nomination this year, don't say we didn't warn you.
Also: 'Bangkok'
Nicolas Cage shouldn't have the career he does.
Responsible for some very good films and some truly awful ones, he has lousy taste when it comes to picking projects.
Case in point: "Bangkok Dangerous." Based on the Pang Brothers' 1999 Thai film, the new actioner doesn't come with a Quentin Tarantino spin or a "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" pedigree. It's just another piece of Asian junk, made notable because Cage is in it.
Wearing a greasy black wig, he plays a veteran hit man who goes to Thailand for four jobs. In the process, he meets a beautiful hearing-impaired woman and a feisty young pickpocket. Both become attached to him to some degree, thereby breaking one of the hit man's four codes of conduct.
Before the last man is killed, he botches the other three, too. But "Bangkok Dangerous" is so predictable you don't need a list to know what's coming next.
Also this week:
TV: "Babylon A.D."; "Battlestar Galactica," season four; "Doctor Who"; "Duckman," complete series; "Frisky Dingo," season two; "Mannix," season two; "Transformers," season two; "Tudors," season two; "The Waltons," season eight
Film: "Behind Enemy Lines"; "Disaster Movie"; "Eden Lake"; "Midnight Movie"; "Ping Pong Playa"; "Righteous Kill"; "The Wackness"
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