A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas Review

There are of course exceptions, but the law of diminishing returns says that most movie series aren't firing on all cylinders by Part 3 and I think that's extra true for comedy series – After all, you won't find many fans saying how American Wedding or Austin Powers in Goldmember were the "best yet!" That being the case, it's not shocking that A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas struggles more than its predecessors. Ultimately though, it's still a satisfying experience for fans of the series.

Unlike the second film, which picked up hours after the original, the passage of time is finally felt in Harold & Kumar 3, with several years having gone by since Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) went to White Castle and escaped from Guantanamo Bay. Which is good, since while the actors certainly are aging well (particularly Cho, who doesn't look his 39 years at all), you can't keep these characters young forever. Or can you?

John Cho, Kal Penn and NPH Talk Harold & Kumar 3 with IGN

Harold and Kumar 3 actually tackles this a bit, beginning with the duo having gone their separate ways. Since last we saw him, Harold has become a successful businessman and husband (married to Paula Garces' returning Maria) with a big, beautiful home. And Kumar is… still sitting on his couch, getting high, having torpedoed his relationship with Vanessa (Danneel Harris) in the process. But when a package for Harold gets delivered to the apartment they once shared, Kumar decides to drop it off to him – proving he's as troublemaking as ever when his visit leads to the massive Christmas tree from Harold's father-in-law getting destroyed. And so, on Christmas Eve, the two former friends set out to get a replacement tree on a night that will soon include mobsters, cocaine, guns, Santa Claus and, of course, Neil Patrick Harris.

The first Harold & Kumar was a bit subversive simply by its existence – a stoner bud comedy that focused on guys who were Korean and Indian was a nice bit of paradigm-shifting not just for the pot-comedy subgenre but mainstream movies in general, which still tends to be very narrow in their focus. While wonderfully vulgar and outrageous, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle also -- via jokes, of course -- touched upon racial profiling and stereotypes, which was expanded even further in the second film, with its "c**k-meat sandwich"-fueled look at the war on terror.


A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas has smaller aspirations. Oh, there are plenty of equal opportunity racial jokes – funny ones, too – aimed at and said by all types of characters, including Maria's family members and the returning Goldstein (David Krumholtz) and Rosenberg (Eddie Kaye Thomas). But it doesn't have much more to say beyond that. That's okay though, since the movie has some very funny scenes. The biggest issue is one of pace. The early portion in particular is very uneven and it takes a good third of the way in or so for Harold & Kumar 3 to really pick up steam. Fortunately, there are plenty of solid laughs once it gets going and several strong sequences, including the duo facing off against a group of bratty teenagers at a party (who have the audacity to love the Jaden Smith version of The Karate Kid over the original) and a drugged Harold & Kumar imagining themselves as stop-motion animated characters traveling through Manhattan's winter wonderland. Oh, and casting Danny Trejo as Maria's intimidating father? Inspired.

On the other hand, there are elements of the film that fall flat. Tom Lennon and Amir Blumenfeld play Harold & Kumar's respective new friends, Todd and Adrian, who end up being separated from the title characters and locked in a closet for much of the running time. The idea of Todd's infant daughter accidentally getting high thanks to being around Harold & Kumar is a good, oh-so-wrong element, but it's kind of beaten over the head and otherwise, there isn't much to the Todd and Adrian's scenes. Though it did amuse me to see Elias Koteas as the mobster they're hiding from, just because Koteas looks so much like Chris Meloni (who appeared in different roles in the first two films) that I'm going to assume they couldn't get Meloni back so Koteas subbed for him.

Harold & Kumar 3 Red Band Trailer

Perhaps inevitably, the high point – no pun intended – of the film comes with the arrival of the rightfully adored Neil Patrick Harris. His big musical number is okay, but what follows is hysterical. Patrick's always been a great sport in these movies, playing an incredibly debauched, out of control, drug and whore addicted alternate reality version of himself. Of course, Patrick now being openly gay, in a committed relationship and the father of twins has only made the Harold & Kumar "NPH" funnier, and this time out they tackle that head on. Yes, the Harold & Kumar NPH has publicly come out too, and how they reconcile that and tie it into Harris' real life is truly hysterical. Once again, Harris looks to be having a ball and going for broke and it's hard not to be disappointed when you realize his time in the movie has come to a close after just a couple of scenes.

As for the 3D, I'm quite sick of it, but that being said, if you check out this movie then 3D is the way to see it. Everything from the smoke from Kumar's bong to various explosions and, yes, a stop-motion animated penis, make use of the three dimensions – this isn't subtle, "immersive" 3D. This is gratuitous, let's-go-for-it 3D and I'd imagine seeing it in 2D would be a bit distracting, because of all the moments so obviously designed for the 3D experience. At least screenwriters Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg and director Todd Strauss-Schulson have fun with it all, with several in-jokes on the subject, including Harold suggesting 3D has jumped the shark. Yes, it has, Harold. Yes, it has...

In the end though, if you're a fan of Harold & Kumar, you should enjoy a Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. Cho and Penn continue to be a likable pair who work well off each other and it's fun to spend time with them, even in the movie's off moments. Plus, the movie offers WaffleBot. Who is WaffleBot, you ask? A robot… kitchen helper… thing who plays a crucial role in this Harold & Kumar adventure. And he, along with NPH, is the film's scene-stealer. You'll believe a robot can make a waffle, oh yes.

• More Movies Reviews
• Latest Movies News, Reviews, and Videos