Huw G (hgtoo)

An all over the place mixed bag. Comprehensively fails to capture the spirit of the book, with some bizarre anti-drugs scenes thrown in to boot.

Not actually rubbish, & its biggest failing may have been to attempt to adapt the story to a film in the first place. You probably have to get caught up in the length & detail of the book to understand how utterly consuming the lifestyle he led was, & a film is just too short to portray that.

In the book, Howard Marks rises above both stoner culture & violence. At the same time the war on drugs, as so often elsewhere, is revealed like the emperor's new clothes. Sadly, not so the film, which is more of a light hearted romp aimed at the middle ground, with a traditional moral warning thrown in.

Those who haven't read the book will find the film forgettable, & those who have will be reminded how good it was, & be a bit disappointed with the film.

A great, intelligent, & mostly but not always dark, sense of humour. Feels gently paced yet moves along nicely. A few tiny, forgivable glitches are its only faults. So much more than the light hearted comedy it might be mistaken for.