Right up front it needs to be said that all forms of addiction are terrible. This disease destroys families and ruins lives. Still, for as long as cinema has been a popular form of entertainment inebriation has been a source of humor. Many people find it very amusing to watch as somebody under the influence stumbles around unable to perform the most routine task properly. I have been in a eighties frame of mind recently due to the release of the new wave of Paramount’s ‘I Love the Eighties’ DVD series so in this case my mind has gone towards the ever popular druggie flick. You all know the kind that I am talking about and the substance being abused is almost always marijuana. In this case the particular film under discussion is Cheech and Chong’s ‘Still Smokin’. One might think that films like this began in this decade but they are part of a much longer history of ‘under the influence’ comedies in movies. The only thing that really changed is the substance used to get the person in that state. One of the most popular comedies of the silver screen was W.C. Fields. His persona in the movies was of a drunk. He would drink to excess and that provided an excuse for his acerbic and socially incorrect remarks. Even on television there was always the funny drunk to be found such as the character of Otis on Andy Griffith’s ‘Mayberry’. Audiences find it humorous to watch a person do very foolish things while they are in an impaired condition. Cheech and Chong were two men who were in the right place at the right time. The adults of the eighties where the same teens in the late sixties and early seventies who were part of the so called ‘hippy’ movement. Many had smoked pot and most did not see it as the deadly menace that their parent’s culture would lead them to believe. Pot at one time was considered the evil weed that would kill you. Most of us have seen the propaganda flick from 1936, ‘Reefer Madness’ and most likely think of it as a comedy. When it was made it was serious in its intent to warn the youth of America. In order for an inebriation flick to work the substance in question has to have achieved some degree of social acceptance. In the eighties the audience had grown up around pot and it was time the drug to hit the mainstream theaters. ‘Still Smokin’ is the funniest of all the films that Cheech and Chong were featured in and has earned its place in the ‘I Love the Eighties’ collection. While not familay friendly but for those that remember that decade first hand it is extremely funny.

Just as the audience that would embrace them were coming of age Cheech and Chong burst on the scene. Their humor was largely based on the use of pot as a recreational drug but there was a lot more under the surface in the ay of social commentary. Richard "Cheech" Marin and Tommy Chong began their stand up comedy career in the early seventies and by the time that decade was around their record albums were a must have item in every college dormitory. They had no pretense about the target demographic even going to the point of naming their most popular album ‘Big Bamboo’ after the popular brand of rolling paper and including a giant sheet of said paper in the album cover. Much of the humor that was premiered in the albums found its way into their movies. For this outing the writing was done by both of them. Mostly in required adding a more visual element to the routines and bits they used in their albums. Since much of that material started in their highly physically oriented stag act the process was just coming full circle for the pair. Tommy Chong took on the directorial chores for this flick. He had already taken on this function for three of the previous films for the team. There is not much of a plot here, as is to be expected. Actually, there is less in the way of a story line than most of their films. The concept was the film alter egos of the due have a chance to go to Amsterdam to perform at a festival. The venue’s promoter (Hans Man in 't Veld) talks them into the gig even though they hadn’t performed in public for several years. Once there they are mistaken for Burt Reynolds and Dolly Parton; okay their fans are just as stoned as they were so this is not that much of a stretch of the imagination as you might think. The promoter takes off with all their money so the guys are trapped in Amsterdam; not a bad place for a pair of American stoners. The team pretty much gets right down to their performance giving this movie the feel of a concert film rather than a show within a show offering. This is the type of movie that will review poorly with many critics. It lacks the cinematic flair and technical expertise that is required to garner a lot of praise. The up side is it is a flick that the fans love; a true cult classic. The bits are funny even if their substance of choice is not your cup of tea, so to speak.

As the film starts Cheech and Chong are swept away to a luxurious hotel room and as the manager is pointing out the sights from the window all Cheech can see is the lovely blonde maid (Susan Hahn) who is smiling at him. It wouldn’t be a Cheech and Chong movie without the prospect of some very casual sex. Everyone still thinks that Cheech and Chong are Reynolds and Parton. One of the first sight gags is Cheech battling a bidet. This sets the level of the comedy that is to follow; juvenile but funny. The take a tour around town and eat at a place where pot dominates the menu. The best part of the film is them kicking back and performing their act. For those of us that remember seeing them in a college town concert or from their albums this was a true blast from the past. The two of them are incredibly talented performers who are able to capture the imagination of the audience. In particular Cheech is a master of physical comedy able to throw his entire body into the gag. For most of the bits Chong does what he always did best; play the straight man. He would set up the joke and Cheech never failed to bring it home.

This film may not be the best in this latest wave of ‘I Love the Eighties’ but it deserves its place in the series. This is the definitive stoner comedy of the decade and the jokes still hold together after twenty five or more years. It takes a lot of talent and devotion to your craft to act this silly and these men mastered the art. Like many other forms of comedy the ‘R’ rated variations have degraded over the years. Now they are stupid for the sake of stupidity with little or no substance behind them, In the case of these men their humor was to strike a chord with their audience by poking fun of the established forms of humor. They used sex and drugs as their medium but there was obviously a lot of hard work that went into the creation of this flick.