The runtime for this is an hour and a half, it gets in and out fairly quickly which is smart because with an all night comedy film like this, you can’t stretch things out too much. Overall, there’s a decent pace to this, it makes sure not to overstay it’s welcome. Some may not care a lot about that but I do wish those scenes where that is used looked more realistic because it takes away from those scenes. The special effects used for stunts in this are very obviously fake. I don’t think any of the gay jokes in this would be in a mainstream comedy film today.Īnother thing about this that isn’t so great is the poor CGI used.
They are not abundant thankfully but they are present here and there and unlike the jokes about race, the jokes about gays aren’t intelligent or affirming. Now there is one sure fire giveaway that this film was made in 2004 and that’s the gay jokes. That is what I call intelligent comedy and I value that a lot more than toilet/gross out humor. And besides being genuinely funny, they’re also driving home a message about race, one that needed to be sent then and unfortunately still today. There are a good many jokes about racial realities in America and they land almost 100% of the time. But, where this film’s comedy flourishes in in the comedic commentary on racial stereotypes.
When it veers into scatological or other bodily humor, it falls pretty flat and becomes dull. In my opinion this film’s comedy is at its lowest when it’s trying to do gross out stuff. John Cho and Kal Penn in Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle That is very important because if that isn’t made a priority at all then the main characters just become annoying asses that I do not want to root for. Even though Kumar is very juvenile and definitely makes questionable choices, the film prioritizes making him out to be an overall good guy. They have such a strong likability factor that makes you root for them. The talents of Kal Penn and John Cho really do keep this thing from sinking and disappearing into oblivion. These two and their fun chemistry make this film a lot of fun, even when the comedy doesn’t land as well as it should. This isn’t one of my absolute favorite comedy films or anything but I do enjoy it and there’s really one main reason – Kal Penn and John Cho. These films serve as escapist R rated comedy and at least for this one’s sake – it does a pretty good job satisfying that desire. This film is of course the first in what turned out to be a trilogy of Harold and Kumar films. What to Watch On All Streaming Services Explore/search everything from 40+ services Save and track what you want to watch Follow your friends to see what. I ran across Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle on Hulu the other night and realized I’d never sat down and watched the entire thing, so I decided to give it a go.