Simply A Masterpiece

Redundant and unnecessary.

Boring

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

American musicals have taken a bit of a beating as of late. While I haven't seen any musical releases this year thus far, I saw two, highly advertised ones last year. The absolutely dreadful Rock of Ages (2012) and the Les Miserables (2012). Even if you disagree with my assessment of these two films, even if you think they aren't abhorrent wastes of time and patience, you have to admit no modern musical since Chicago (2002) has had exciting dance sequences that harken back to the best of MGM.That is unless you include the Showtime made-for-TV movie Reefer Madness (2004) which I do. For while Les Miserables contained elaborate sets (most of which you couldn't see due to all the f***ing close-ups) and Rock of Ages contained big name stars, Reefer Madness contained sixteen complex musical numbers complete with masterful choreography and an infectious sense of humor. Oh, and it's about pot.Reefer Madness follows the story of Jimmy Harper (Christian Campbell), a strapping young lad of some sixteen summers. He falls for a girl by the name of Mary Lane (Kristen Bell) but also falls into the clutches of scurrilous drug dealer Jack (Steven Weber), his weak-willed girlfriend Mae (Ana Gasteyer) and their fellow pot groupies (Amy Spanger and John Kassir). Can true love carry the day and save Jimmy from the evil influences of marijuana? Or will the devil weed take him and his you love with him.The musical is based on a 1936 propaganda film of the same name. When it was released it was a tale of caution against the dangers of marijuana. When it resurfaced in the 60's, 70's and beyond, Reefer Madness became a cult classic largely because of its cheesy, over-the-top story and its egregious misrepresentation of pot and its dangers.Now I don't personally smoke the stagger leaf myself. I see no point in smoking something that will distort the way I see the world for a few hours. That's what I have movies for. But with statistics being thrown out like, "four out of five cases of violent crimes are committed by dope slaves," and "marijuana has an addictive power beyond that of cocaine and heroin," you can't help but giggle at the after school special gone awry. Even Thelma White, the actress who played the original Mae was tickled by the movies original screenplay. She would later live to see Reefer Madness become an off-Broadway musical and was invited by the creators to opening night.Released by Showtime Networks on DVD, Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical has become somewhat of a cult favorite in its own right even if it didn't make it to the big screen. For just like the 1986 update on the 1960 Roger Corman original Little Shop of Horrors, Reefer Madness updates the material inserting an acerbic yet eager sense of humor and musical numbers. And boy is it a sight to see.Credit must be given to veteran TV scribes Kevin Murphy and Dan Studney (Who also wrote the original musical). Their penchant for quality small screen scrawling and collaboration created a movie that jumps off the screen. Veteran TV actors Ana Gasteyer of Saturday Night Live (1975- Present) fame, Kristen Bell of Veronica Mars (2004-2007) fame, Steven Weber of Wings (1990-1997) fame and Christian Campbell of...I want to say The 4400 (2004-2007) fame, all make valiant and worthwhile efforts in their respective parts. John Kassir, who played the voice of the Crypt Keeper in pervasive horror series Tales From the Crypt (1989-1996) takes home the prize for most hilariously over-the-top performance as Ralph, the pot-addled college boy.How deliciously absurd is Reefer Madness? Even the DVD case smells of chocolate. Watch it because you must. Then watch it again because you want to. It's the Rocky Horror (1975) of the Bush years. The Little Shop of Horrors of premium cable and even if you watch Reefer Madness and don't think it's all that and a dime bag of weed, it's still has more to offer stylistically than something as trite as Rock of Ages.http://theyservepopcorninhell.blogspot.com/

I have a bit of a complaint about this and many other movies. When I got the DVD, I noticed there were no captions of any sort--and it sure would have helped since several in my household are hard of hearing. In addition, I am sure that a lot of fans of musicals would have loved to have been able to see the words and perhaps even sing along.As for the film, "Reefer Madness: The Musical" is based, very loosely, on the original film "Reefer Madness (1936--also called "Tell Your Children"). It is a musical parody of the original--which is a bit of a problem since the original film was a comedy--though perhaps unintentionally. It's known by bad movie fans as one of the most enjoyably bad movies of the era. And, I must confess, while I liked this musical, I still would much prefer to watch the original--it is truly hilarious (though the studio's other offering, "Sex Madness", is actually even funnier).Now if you do watch this film, be prepared to be offended. I am not talking about how it trivializes pot use but the scenes of Jesus dancing about with Satan in one song as well as the sexual nature of the film. It is NOT a film for small children or mother-in-laws! If you can look past this and decide to watch the film, be sure to watch Alan Cumming--who is absolutely awesome in the movie. I love how he made his British accent completely disappear--putting on a rugged voice and singing with a range I never thought he was capable of doing. Wow...what a voice. Also, possessing another wonderful voice is Christian Campbell--who has a knack for picking strange and edgy roles (his most icky and cool was "Pretty Dead Girl"--a definite must-see). And it didn't hurt that the songs were so gosh-darn cute.By the way, didn't Christian Campbell remind you of the pug from the end of "Best In Show"? If you are not sure, see him at the 60 minute mark and you'll see what I mean.

Quite simply this movie is spellbinding. From the opening bars of 'Reefer Madness' to the closing notes of 'Tell 'em The Truth' You will be enthralled. Taking a drug-propaganda film that was allegedly made by the government and turning it into a comedy-musical isn't an easy task but the writers managed to pull it off. The cast is superb, embracing the very over-the-top 30's style acting that the original movie had and playing it to the hilt. And they can sing us a storm. But quite possibly the musical highlight of the film is when Ana Gasteyer performs 'The Stuff' with as much emotion and sensuality as she can muster. This movie will definitely be remembered for years to come.

I think that most people saying bad things about this movie must think it takes itself seriously, which says something about the people to begin with. If you know the original 1936 version, this movie is awesome, otherwise you'll likely be confused. It is a sarcastic version of the original film with some great campy music, with great choreography. The songs that have nothing to do with pot are some of the best. It may seem like it was convenient for rhyming purposes to call the love interest Mary Lane, yet that was her name in the 1936 version, long before they called pot Mary Jane. Just a great coincidence that made for great rhyming. The DVD includes the hour long 1936 movie, if you haven't seen it, watch it first. This really is a musical version of that same story, pot paranoia intact, as the original was misinformed scare tactics. Despite your stance on legalization, you can't deny that the original film grossly exaggerated the effects. One hit and people become killers and whores. The movie is first and foremost a goofy musical comedy though. If you are looking for a message you won't find one except maybe the fact that people used to believe anything they saw on film. Don't judge this movie without seeing the original though, and if you don't get a laugh out of the original, you wont out of this either. It is required viewing, so much that they included it on the DVD!