I grew up a fan of the stoner comedy albums of Cheech & Chong, years before I ever inhaled of the sacred sweetleaf, enjoying their work because it was basically old school-style radio comedy for the then-modern era. The success of the humor had nothing to do with having experienced being stoned. It was simply about the misadventures of two hapless stoners and other characters in their daily lives, so it was highly relatable. Their movies, which is where they made their real money, were a mixed bag, with, in my opinion, only UP IN SMOKE and CHEECH & CHONG'S NEXT MOVIE being legitimate classics, and NICE DREAMS and THINGS ARE TOUGH ALL OVER being entertaining enough, if not particularly inspired. Which brings us to CHEECH & CHONG'S LAST MOVIE.
The film is a bit of a misnomer, in that it isn't a narrative comedy, and is instead a bittersweet career memoir framed within an aimless road trip by Cheech & Chong as their old man selves. Those of us who are fans and who have researched their history will be aware of the behind the scenes details, but it serves as a solid history lesson for newcomers. Cheech & Chong's comedy was very much of its post-hippie era and might not translate well to today's sensibilities, but back then they were HUGE, literally the comedy equivalent of rock superstars.
