Reefer Madness, released in 1936, was a warning film about the dangers of marijuana, but because of the over-the-top acting and bad portrayal of the symptoms of someone under the influence of weed, the film developed a cult following that is seen more of a comedy than a serious movie about the dangers of drugs.
The small, unnamed town the story takes place in appears to be your ideal 1930's setting with a lot of keen kids and good families, but when a couple who sell weed start looking for new clients and decide to cater to the youth of the town, manslaughter, hit and runs, rape and general dismay run rampant.
The story starts off with just a few individuals falling under the influence, but it isn't long before even the sweet nerdy kid finds himself toking and when one girl ends up dead, it gets revealed just how much drugs like marijuana can hurt.
The odd thing is, pretty much none of the symptoms shown in the film are associated with weed. Whether it is manic laughter or speeding down the street, the problems shown just don't fit. The only possible exception is the frequent amount of meals the drug-dealing husband eats to show off that he has the munchies.
And these little tidbits, along with flubbed lines and extreme over-acting are simply fodder for the commentators as they rip this movie up in the way only they can do. What I really enjoyed was the fact that they don't talk through major plot points. If they are talking over the actors, it is rarely something necessary for the overall movie, so even if this is your first time seeing Reefer Madness, you won't lose the story. But just in case, you might want to watch it without RiffTrax turned on the first time. Because quite frankly, this movie is funny on its own right, so adding the extra audio just makes it better.
Like I said before, there aren't any special features included with RiffTrax: Reefer Madness, so if you are looking for a copy with more than this great commentary, then you might want to try and find a different copy.
