By
STEPHEN HOLDEN
New York Times
The
clouds of marijuana smoke wafting through "How High" are so thick
that at moments the haze from all that ganja threatens to obscure
the actors' faces. This chaotic mess of a film, starring the rap stars
Method Man and Redman as a hip- hop Cheech and Chong, has the disjointed
quality of a stoned-out fantasy. Many of the faces that emerge through
the murk appear bug-eyed. And much of the dialogue, which is frequently
shouted, is only semi-intelligible. The movie, directed by Jesse Dylan
from a screenplay by Dustin Lee Abraham, is so loosely constructed
that its scenes don't track.
At
heart "How High" is a joshing, sardonic ode to "blunts and booty"
that preaches the same message as a 60's hippie flick exalting the
liberating potential of pot, but in a different language. A couple
of tokes of magic weed, it suggests, will set you free. Once Silas
(Method Man) and Jamal (Redman), two pot-smoking buddies, land at
Harvard, the staid university is helpless against the power of their
stash, gleaned from a plant nurtured by the ashes of Silas's best
friend, Ivory (Chuck Davis), who accidentally incinerated himself.
In a matter of weeks Harvard turns into the hardest partying school
on the planet.
The
stuff is so potent that when smoked it conjures up the genielike appearance
of Ivory himself. It was his omniscient ghost who gave Silas and Jamal
the answers to their college entrance exams. Their perfect test scores
guaranteed access to any university of their choosing. Near the end
of the film Ivory shows up with his new stoned-out buddy in the hereafter,
Benjamin Franklin, who is credited with having invented the bong.
Amid
all the jokes about dope and sex, the movie manages to slip in some
racial humor. Spalding Gray has a frenetic turn as a ludicrous white
professor of black studies who is so guilt ridden that he pleads to
his students, "Lynch me! Lynch me!" But the villain of the piece is
a prudish black professor, Dean Cain (Obba Babatundé), whose grandeur
is temporarily punctured when he unsuspectingly munches on some marijuana
brownies. Under their influence his inner funkster takes over, and
he becomes the gyrating, trash- talking life of the party.
"How
High" is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian).
It includes sexual situations and is crammed with profanity.
HOW
HIGH
Directed
by Jesse Dylan; written by Dustin Lee Abraham; director of photography,
Francis Kenny; edited by Larry Bock; music by Rockwilder; production
designer, Clark Hunter; produced by Danny DeVito, Michael Shamberg,
Stacey Sher, Shauna Garr and James Ellis; released by Universal Pictures.
Running time: 96 minutes. This film is rated R.
WITH: Method Man (Silas P. Silas), Redman (Jamal King), Obba Babatundé
(Dean Cain), Mike Epps (Baby Powder), Fred Willard (Huntley), Anna
Maria Horsford (Mrs. King), Spalding Gray (Professor Jackson), Jeffrey
Jones (Vice President), Chuck Davis (Ivory) and Hector Elizondo (Crew
Coach).
