the finer dandy

Neil Patrick Harris, (from left) Kal Penn and John Cho reprise their roles in this Harold and Kumar follow-up

Three words: An emo Harold. Three more words: Neil Patrick Harris. Three more words: Explosive bowel movements. Three more words: Enjoyably unnecessary vulgarities. Two more words: Glowing unicorns. I could do this all day.

Most of that will make sense when you see Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. I was lucky enough to see one of the preliminary screenings at SFIAAFF - and I am glad I made that trek to Japantown’s Kabuki Cinemas.

The plot: Yes, it does have a plot and it is very epic. It’s revolutionary. It’s mind-blowing. Okay, not really - but it does go deeper than hunting for White Castle burgers. The movie picks up where the last one left off. Harold (Cho) and Kumar (Penn) plan a trip to Amsterdam in order to find Harold’s hottie, Maria (Paula Garcés). At the airport, they run into Kumar’s ex, Vanessa (Danneel Harris) who he obviously still has feelings for. They find out that she’s engaged to an “Abercrombie and Fitch douche bag,” Colton (Eric Winter) - but enough of all that. While they are en route to Amsterdam, the stoner duo run into some problems and they end up locked up in Guantanamo Bay and, as the title of the movie suggests, they escape. Stoner/vulgar hilarity ensues.

What I liked: Despite all the slapstick and grotesque humor, the movie is a great social commentary on racial stereotypes. Sure, some people might take offense, but in a bizarre way, it’s smart. Once they tell a joke, you’ll laugh, and then you’ll think marinate on it - this excludes the more gratuitous humor. There’s a lot of it and I won’t mention the girth of it. You’ll just have to see for yourself. Also, I like how the dynamic between Kumar and his ex. It shows that behind his slacker/pot smoking exterior, he does have a heart of gold - and Danneel Harris is gorgeous. Oh yes there is one more thing. I know I said it before, but I urge you, please keep your eye out for the emo Harold. It will make your day.

What I didn’t like: This movie isn’t supposed to do anything more than make you laugh - and that’s what I did. But then there was this (spoiler alert) President Bush impersonator. That made me lose my giggling buzz. It was like a sore thumb. I appreciate the fact that they wanted to throw in a dash of political commentary, but I am not a fan of impersonators in movies. Let me put it this way, I enjoyed the unicorn and brothel more.

My rating: I give it a “B” for great male bonding, hilarity and most of all, the unicorn.