A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas - (November 4, 2011): R
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Opening Weekend Box Office: #3 with $12,954,142
Domestic Box Office Gross to-date: $23,237,525
Gross Revenue: $23,237,525
Production Budget: $19 million
Director: Todd Strauss-Schulson
Back in 2004, audiences were pitched a film about two stoners desperately trying to seek-out White Castle burgers in order to satisfy a case of the munchies, and against all expectations, that strange and simple premise resonated strongly with audiences, and in 2008, straight-laced Harold and chaotic Kumar found themselves trapped in Guantanamo Bay…it was only a matter of time before they offered a twisted take on Christmas. And it is impossible to speak about the Harold & Kumar series without mentioning Neil Patrick Harris, whose exaggerated portrayal of himself was so well-received that he was offered a role on a new sitcom in development over at CBS, How I Met Your Mother…we all know how that turned out. Now, when Kal Penn decided to quit acting and work in The White House, the future of the series was definitely in doubt, but I’m sure fans breathed a collective sigh of relief when the first trailers for 3D Christmas hit. Besides the familiar characters, trailers indicated that the biggest selling point for Warner Bros. to leverage this entry would be that this film stands as the first of the series to be offered in 3D, and the self-aware nature of the promotions indicated that the technology would not be wasted this time around. I doubt anyone had flaming Christmas trees and a swearing Santa in mind while they were awaiting the first true festive film of the Holiday Movie Season…hopefully Harold and Kumar would not disappoint their fans.
Set a few years after Harold and Kumar escaped from Guantanamo Bay, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas finds the two friends estranged and leading very different lives: Harold (John Cho) is a successful executive with a beautiful home and is married to the girl of his dreams, Maria (Paula Garcé), while Kumar (Kal Penn) is still between jobs, living in his old apartment, and separated from his longtime girlfriend, Vanessa (Danneel Harris). The two are thrust together when a mysterious package for Harold arrives at Kumar’s apartment, and upon delivery, the Christmas tree that Harold has been preparing for a big family holiday party is accidently destroyed. Desperate to impress his overbearing and judgmental father-in-law, Mr. Perez (Danny Trejo), Harold insists that Kumar help him find a replacement, and together, the two embark on a chaotic adventure that includes Russian mobsters, a toddler with the munchies, a claymation snowman, and of course, the big guy, Santa Claus (Richard Rieble). Along the way, the two also encounter their old friend, Neil Patrick Harris (himself), who is himself preparing his own Holiday Special and who also agrees to help locate the perfect tree. Amid the chaos, the old friends confront their issues and begin to rekindle their friendship just in time for Christmas.
As expected, the best part of A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas is its crude and outrageous humor that is nothing short of hysterical: drugs, women, ethnicities, corporations, musicals, teenagers, organized crime…absolutely nothing is off limits. It is actually the type of film worth seeing more than once just so that you are able to catch all of the quotes so that you can repeat them over and over. Against all expectations, the other accolade for 3D Christmas is the 3D technology itself, with nearly everything jumping off the screen in an energetic way, whether it’s the eggs being thrown by Wall Street protestors, the traffic cones being run over, or the smoke being, well, smoked. In both its humor and its use of 3D, the film is very self-aware, meaning that it knows exactly what type of comedy it offers, that 3D is a novelty at best, and no one is looking for anything overtly deep…in one scene in particular, Kumar comments on how no one would ever believe that he could work at The White House. Based on these two elements alone, 3D Christmas is easily the best film of the series, but the accolades extend even further.
If I had to find any fault in 3D Christmas, it would simply be that it takes over half of the movie for Neil Patrick Harris to appear…don’t get me wrong, he makes the most of every second he is on screen, but if I had my way, he would have been in every scene. I guess another element of the film that is surprising involves the fact that the friendship between Harold and Kumar showcased is filled with much more emotion and heart than you would ever expect to find in a stoner comedy. Also, between the holiday music and search for the perfect tree, 3D Christmas is sure to fill you with the X-mas spirit…I realize how wrong that may sound given the franchise, but just trust me when I say the film is festive. Now, to be realistic, the film more than earns its R-rating, and as such, nothing could be further from a mass-appeal film; it may be clearly targeted at a certain demographic, but the high quality of the overall product may earn the series some new fans. Plain and simple, with no overt shortcomings, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas should not be missed.
From a box office perspective, 3D Christmas performed right in line with expectations, as there was no way that an R-rated franchise comedy was going to take down family friendly Puss in Boots or star-studded Tower Heist. Still, with a modest budget and a dedicated fan following, it is not at all surprising that the clever film has already recovered its costs. With the accompanying jump in quality, I can only hope we will see more and more of Harold and Kumar in the future. At the very least, an animated series based on the claymation segment has already been green lit, and based on those hysterical minutes of the film, I will be sure to check out the characters’ on the small screen. Definitely an odd start to the Holiday Movie Season, don’t immediately discount A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas…I guarantee that it is much better than you are expecting.
Overall Recommendation: Very High
