A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas
A more recent annual favorite to watch at this time of year is 2011’s comedy, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas starring Kal Penn and John Cho. The third film starring the Harold & Kumar characters following H&K Go to White Castle (2004) and H&K Escape From Guantanamo Bay (2008), 3D Christmas ages them to be closer to the actors themselves (skipping 6 years in character time from the last film made 3 years ago). Like the first two, the chemistry between the leads made me cheer for their well being while cringing, gasping, and laughing at the bizarre situations they land themselves in. With a grown up rating of 18A, the film does not shy to curse, bleed, or remove some clothes, perfectly suited to match the rapid fire pace of innuendos and insults. While Harold has matured moving into a house with his wife, his pal Kumar has drifted further into despair, and enter the holiday season to bring them back together and test their friendship. If you like colorful language, jokes involving drug use, 3D (done better here than most films of its era), and waffles, watch this movie this holiday season, (it is one of the first I watched this December). Filmed in Detroit (subbing for New York), the movie was directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson who previously made tv movies (Naked But Funny in 2010 and Blimp Prom in 2009), and next made Onion News Empire (2013) and is now making Isn’t It Romantic (comedy starring Priyanka Chopra, Liam Hemsworth, and Rebel Wilson for a 2019 release). It is written by Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg who also wrote the first two films and next made American Reunion (2012 comedy) and are attached to make American Pie 5. Kal Penn previously was in Epic Movie (2007 comedy), was next in Dementamania (2013 thriller), and is currently in Designated Survivor (2016-2018 drama series as an employee at the White House). John Cho was previously in the mystery series Flashforward (2009-2010 about a special task force in the FBI), was next in Total Recall (2012 sci-fi remake starring Colin Farrell), and is currently in the horror series The Exorcist. The film also has numerous memorable appearances by Patton Oswalt, Danny Trejo, RZA, Elias Koteas, Neil Patrick Harris, and the DVD includes deleted scenes.
2011, 18A, 1h 30m
Distributor – Warner Bros.
Budget / Worldwide Box Office (in millions) – $19 / $35
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