Harold & Kumar Get the Munchies

Remember that Asian guy from American Pie? How about that Indian guy from Van Wilder, party Liaison? Ever wondered what it would be like if these two got together and headlined their own movie instead? Well, wonder no more!

Harold Lee (Cho) is a serious and shy junior Wall Street analyst, whilst Kumar Patel (Penn) is a party animal whose parents think he’s about to enrol into medical school. Besides sharing a flat together, they also have a mutual love of marijuana. Whilst getting stoned one night, they become fixated on a White Castle advert on TV... and so the stage is set for a rollercoaster road trip to their “nearest” White Castle joint to feed their burger craving. Soon Harold and Kumar find themselves riding cheetahs, fighting and being intimate with raccoons, then getting arrested.

Director Danny Leiner follows up his hit comedy, Dude, Where’s My Car? with an even funnier offering, although much of the film’s success is due to an incredibly funny script, brilliantly executed by Cho and Penn, two remarkably charismatic and likeable actors. Add to that a whole array of racial stereotype twists, film references and a particularly inspired cameo from Neil Patrick Harris (yes, Doogie Howser, M.D.) as a sex-crazed hitch-hiker who steals Harold’s car, and you have a wonderfully silly film. But remember, “It’s not just about the burgers.  It’s about the American dream...” Do not miss!

Alex Coe