Grass (1999)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Ron Mann

Writer:

Solomon Vesta (writer)

Release Date:

14 July 2000 (Spain)

Genre:

Documentary | History

Plot:

The history of the American government's war on marijuana in the 20th century.

Plot Keywords:

Marijuana | Government | Propaganda | Analysis | Justice

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Woody Harrelson	...	Narrator (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harry J. Anslinger	...	Himself (archive footage)
George Bush	...	Himself (archive footage)
Cab Calloway	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jimmy Carter	...	Himself (archive footage)
Chevy Chase	...	Himself (archive footage)
Tommy Chong	...	Anthony 'Man' Stoner (archive footage)
Nancy Davis	...	Herself (archive footage)
Dwight D. Eisenhower	...	Himself (archive footage)
Gerald Ford	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jerry Garcia	...	Himself (archive footage)
Allen Ginsberg	...	Himself (archive footage)
John F. Kennedy	...	Himself (archive footage)
Gene Krupa	...	Himself (archive footage)
Fiorello LaGuardia	...	Himself (archive footage)
Timothy Leary	...	Himself (archive footage)
John Lennon	...	Himself (archive footage)
Cheech Marin	...	Pedro De Pacas (archive footage)
Gertrude Michael	...	Herself (archive footage)
Robert Mitchum	...	Himself (archive footage)
Richard Nixon	...	Himself (archive footage)
Yoko Ono	...	Herself (archive footage)
Eli Perell	...	Additional Voices
Josh Perell	...	Additional Voices
Ronald Reagan	...	Himself (archive footage)
Harry S. Robins	...	(voice)
John Sinclair	...	Himself (archive footage)
Douglass Smith	...	(voice)
Stephanie Zari	...	(voice)

MPAA:

Rated R for drug content.

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

New Zealand:M | USA:R

Company:

Sphinx Productions

Trivia:

With the exception of the animated chapter headings, this film is comprised entirely of archival footage, films, and videos.

Movie Connections:

Features Marihuana (1936/I)

Soundtrack:

If You're a Viper

Pot 101

Nice that they got Harrelson for the narration (not to mention some of the Firesign guys, etc.).

Perhaps a little *too* boffo at times, but nonetheless a wonderful compendium of pot Americana crafted, accrued, and organized to drive home an important point; what on God's green earth drives this monumental institutional fuss over a weed?

I will look at anything Paul Mavrides (Art Direction) puts his hand to; he's such a monster, gob bless 'im!

For some reason, I'm driven to make a very generic point about this genre of film by highlighting the "inscrutability" of the subject matter. In my mind, "Grass" is in the same category as unexplained phenomena, religion, conspiracies, suppressed inventions, etc. I call it "topic candy", as it pushes the mind to attempt to objectivize the subjective in a fun and frolicsome way. Again: What, after all, *are* the underlying mental/spiritual/social attitudes that fuel marijuana scares, and a kind of concentrated paternalism that makes state socialism look like mom 'n' pop free enterprise by comparison? And attempts by films like "Grass" to attack these kinds of topics is a high-risk game. When you tackle a subject which is, after all, a mental state, you risk appearing irrationally predisposed, but at the same time stand the chance of turning over a rock somewhere in our collective consciousness to find something that is true and illuminating. Which leads to the questions: Does "Grass" take these risks? Yes. Do these risks pay off in "Grass"? My answer: A qualified "maybe". Whether "Grass" succeeds or not isn't as important to me as the fact that it takes those risks. That's really how I feel. And, maybe, that willingness to put things out "on the line" is a kind of success in itself.

If you are a fan of edgy sonics and graphics and have an interest in U.S. anti-drug hysteria, take the time to watch this film. It'll teach you a *few* things you may not have known before. And its highlighting of the mounting national expense for the drug war (fiscal and social) *will* give you serious pause....