"Pineapple Express" was a very pleasant surprise. Sure, I like the Apatow/Rogen films like "Superbad" and "Knocked Up", but when you watch a few of them, they are funny, but somewhat similar. "Pineapple Express" starts with some of the same themes, but ends up going in an entirely different direction. Seth Rogen plays Dale Denton, a process server who spends a good part of his time getting high. During his travels, he is pulled over on the side of the road and happens to witness a murder. Before long, he finds himself, with his dealer Saul Silver (James Franco), in the middle of a war between rival drug mobs. It is at this point that the film morphs from a stoner comedy into a buddy action film and the transition works perfectly. They are able to manage the action and comedy simultaneously without getting overly silly. I have to also admit that anything with Gary Cole (the boss from "Office Space" and broadcaster from "Dodgeball") gets my vote. He is one of the most under-rated character actors out there. Cole is the drug lord who is determined to find and kill Dale Denton. There is a good car chase about mid-way through the film and a great showdown near the end which finds our stoner heroes right in the middle of an all-out gun battle between the warring factions. Danny McBride, from "The Foot Fist Way", has a great role as Saul's drug-dealer buddy, who professes his loyalty while consistently selling out the duo to save his own skin. The only negative on this one is the final scene in a diner, which just takes entirely too long. At this point, the story has pretty much been told and just should have ended. Being a fan of both comedies and action movies, it is always great when someone can blend them together successfully and this one hits its marks.Grade: B-
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