Smiley Face (film)
Smiley Face is a 2007 comedy film written by Dylan Haggerty and directed and co-produced by Gregg Araki. It stars Anna Faris as a young woman who has a series of misadventures after eating a large number of cupcakes laced with cannabis. The supporting cast includes Danny Masterson, John Krasinski, Adam Brody, Jayma Mays, Marion Ross, Jane Lynch, and Roscoe Lee Browne in his final film. This was the ninth feature film directed by Araki.
Plot
The story describes an eventful day in the life of Jane F, an unambitious young actress who enjoys smoking cannabis and lives in a Los Angeles apartment with her nerdy, somewhat disturbing roommate Steve. Jane's fateful day begins when she unknowingly consumes an entire plate full of cannabis-laced cupcakes. Realizing her mistake, she makes a list of tasks she must achieve, and how she plans to make them happen. What follows is a relentless stream of disasters caused by Jane's intoxication.
Cast
- Eric Chen as Mr. Gay
- Wei Wang as the guy smoking weed
- Roscoe Lee Browne as Narrator/Himself (voice)
- Anna Faris as Jane F
- Danny Masterson as Steve the Roommate
- Adam Brody as Steve the Dealer
- John Krasinski as Brevin
- Jayma Mays as Waiting room actress
- Marion Ross as Shirley
- Jane Lynch as Casting director
- Brian Posehn as Bus driver
- Rick Hoffman as Angry Face
- Joey Coco Diaz as Security guard
- Michael Hitchcock as Laundry room man
- John Cho as Mikey
- Danny Trejo as Albert
- Richard Riehle as Mr. Spencer
- Natashia Williams as Motorcyclist
- Carrot Top as Himself
- Dave "Gruber" Allen as Hippie #1
- Dylan Haggerty as Ferris wheel attendant
- William Zabka as Prison guard
Reception
Smiley Face premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, followed by a very small theatrical release; in Los Angeles it had a week long run at the Nuart Theatre in Santa Monica. The film was released to DVD on January 8, 2008. Nathan Lee in his review for the Village Voice wrote that "...100 percent sober when I watched it, I can say with some authority that Dylan Haggerty has written an eleventh-hour candidate for the funniest movie of 2007, that Gregg Araki has directed his finest film since 1997's Nowhere, and that Faris, flawless, rocks their inspired idiot odyssey in a virtuoso comedic turn." It also toured around British cinemas in the summer of 2008 as part of the 22nd London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.
In his review for the New York Times, Matt Zoller Seitz praised Faris' "freakishly committed performance as Jane F. [that] suggests Amy Adams’s princess from Enchanted dropped into a Cheech and Chong movie". Andrew O'Hehir wrote in his review for Salon, "Smiley Face, has a wonderful performance by Anna Faris and one of the all-time great stoner monologues in movie history". In her review for Cinematical, Monika Bartyzel wrote, "Araki's comedy gives us the best of many comedic worlds in an incessantly funny, easily-quotable serving. From discussions of Marxism to love of lasagna, Smiley Face serves it all — with some weed and a very, very stoned smile". The review of the New York Daily News states that "Not since Sean Penn's Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High has an actor so thoroughly dominated the screen while pretending to be in a chemically altered state." In the review of Los Angeles Times it is argued that "Gregg Araki's delirious "Smiley Face" is an unabashed valentine to Anna Faris, an opportunity for the actress to show that she can carry a movie composed of often hilarious nonstop misadventures. No matter how outrageously or foolishly Faris' Jane behaves, she remains blissfully appealing—such are Faris' fearless comedic skills and the freshness of her radiant blond beauty."
However, S. James Snyder, in his review for the New York Sun, wrote, "If this is meant as a lighthearted change of pace for Mr. Araki, after Mysterious Skin, then perhaps he took things too far in the opposite direction. This isn't just light and fluffy; it floats away".
The film-critics aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes listed the film receiving 66% favorable reviews, with the consensus that, "Although many of the jokes have been done before, Anna Faris's bright performance and Gregg Araki's sharp direction make Smiley Face more than your average stoner comedy." Faris won the "Stoner of the Year" award at High Times magazine's Stony Awards, in Los Angeles, on October 13, 2007, for her role in Smiley Face.
