Director: David Bushell
Stars: Tommy Chong, Cheech Marin
Synopsis: Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong discuss their lifelong friendship and popularity as a comedic duo. Features interviews, sketches and never-before-seen footage spanning their five-decade career.
Cheech and Chong are my unofficial uncles. At least, it has felt that way with their presence in some of my earliest childhood memories. Outside of hearing their voices in family-friendly fare such as Ferngully and The Lion King, my late father made the dubious parental decision to share with me some of his favorite Cheech and Chong bits and scenes during my first decade of life. As something of a long-haired hippie type himself before becoming a respectable family man, he was in exactly the right time and place to be hit hard by the wave of these comedy legends. With Cheech and Chong’s Last Movie, the pair come together for the first time in a while for a substantial feature outing, and this time they are looking back on their journey to this moment. As with any time you catch up with family, you are going to hear some stories you have heard before, but there is always a revelation casually dropped that will make you glad you checked in.
The journey begins with a present-day Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong driving in a car as a montage of some of their career highlights acclimate newcomers to their general vibe. This is no road trip documentary in the vein of Will & Harper—it is made quite apparent that the drive is pure artifice for the two to interact in the present as a gateway to telling the story of their past (longtime fans will appreciate that they are searching for “Dave”). The line between documentary and fiction film often feels a bit hazy; at one point, Cheech asks, “Is this a doc or a movie?” Neither party seems particularly sure about this point, but it is clear that some exchanges have been telegraphed ahead of time, while a few genuine moments struggle through. The latter is when the movie springs to life, and, tragically, this is a very small part of the trip.
For the most part, this feature follows the general template for celebrity retrospective documentaries. Each performer gets the chance to tell tales of their childhood woes. Tommy was othered as Chinese-Canadian in Vancouver, while Richard Anthony “Cheech” Marin was going through similar tribulations as a Mexican-American living in South Central. The linear progression is familiar, but director David Bushell attempts to make things a bit more lively with original animated recreations accompanying archival footage and the modern reflections from the car. There is a surprising amount of ground to cover before the duo even meet one another including tuberculosis, infidelity, draft-dodging, the consideration of a religious calling, writing an R&B hit, and more. The two comedians feel the most forthcoming during this half of the film, possibly because they don’t have to consider the other’s feelings.
Of course, the two eventually meet by chance, and we get to see the gentle build to becoming some of the first “rock and roll comedians.” Audiences are treated to the lore behind some of their most famous bits, the dirt behind business decisions with key collaborators, and project-by-project excavation of the impact it had on their friendship and creative partnership. All of this information is baseline entertaining and enlightening if you care at all about the subjects. This may not make it an exceptional documentary, but it generally accomplishes what it sets out to do.
The film only begins to touch on something truly surprising during the last twenty minutes or so, as the documentary begins to explore the deterioration of their partnership. Tommy admits that he wanted to be in charge as the director of their projects to ensure his vision of their legacy was protected, leaving his voice as the final say in any matter. Cheech reveals he built up a resentment from feeling like he did not have a voice in his own comedy team. The two still have clashing points of view as to why things unfolded as they did, and the experience of watching them drop the artifice and dive into the discomfort is gripping for the small stretch it occurs. These are the moments when you actually feel as if you are reaching a form of truth.
The trouble with this is that the discomfort is swatted away so quickly in service of a pleasant ending and a fade to black that you suffer major tonal whiplash. The movie already feels a bit on the long side thanks to a bloated midsection, but you would forgive it if more time were spent with the honest dialogue and bonding. Going into the picture, you know the subjects are participating with their full cooperation, so there is going to be a limit to what they are willing to share. Even within such confines, it is up to a director to be a good tonal shepherd for the audience, and Bushell does not always hit that mark. Nevertheless, the subjects are so much fun with such a rich history that you are bound to have a good time; you will just know that there is a more rewarding version of this film in a different universe.
