MOVIES ABOUT MARIJUANA ARE SPROUTING LIKE WEEDS

There's something in the air at local movie theaters, and it's
marijuana. On Friday, two reefer-themed movies opened in St. Louis:
"Saving Grace," a British comedy about a bankrupt widow who grows pot
to pay the mortgage, and "Grass," a documentary history of marijuana in
America. But beyond these two high-spirited movies, the past year has
brought a boatload of important films in which pot is an integral part
of the story line, including "Eyes Wide Shut," "Wonder Boys" and
"American Beauty."

In almost every case, the drug is depicted in a positive light, or at
least as a deep-rooted reality that thrives in the tall shadow of
unpopular laws. As more states approve medical-marijuana laws and more
politicians acknowlege that the war on drugs is not working, it is
likely that Hollywood will both reflect and shape a more tolerant
attitude toward this hearty weed.

The resurgence of marijuana imagery in recent movies coincides with
several grass-roots political developments. In the last two years,
voters in several states have passed medical-marijuana initiatives, to
the relief of cancer and AIDS patients and to the displeasure of the
federal government. Meanwhile, a generation of neo-hippies is promoting
alternative uses for the humble plant.

As a recent documentary called "The Emperor of Hemp" points out,
marijuana was one of the most important and versatile crops in America
from the days of hemp farmer George Washington until the era of
prohibition. The recent movement to promote hemp as a source of fiber,
fuel and food is surely a backdoor strategy to liberalize the laws
against the recreational use of the drug. But it's also a reflection of
an undeniable reality: that our laws can't eradicate nature, human or
otherwise.

Studies estimate that 60 million Americans have tried marijuana, and
most of them discovered that the official warnings about the demonic
properties of this common plant were a lot of hot air. Some of those
skeptics are now running movie studios, and some of them are running
for political office. When Bill Clinton said that he tried marijuana
once in college but did not inhale, it wasn't the taint of drugs that
hurt his credibility but the preposterous notion that a child of the
'60s might have repudiated grass after a single flirtation. This year,
candidiate Al Gore was quick to acknowlege that he had smoked marijuana
on many occasions, an admission he wisely made on MTV, where it
generated little controversy. On the other hand, fellow baby boomer
George W. Bush looks evasive and prissy when he refuses to say whether
he has ever used illegal drugs.

In Bush's case, the rumors involve cocaine, which is nearly as common
as pot but harder to justify as a youthful pursuit of wisdom.

Stoner comedies have been sporadically popular since the heyday of
Cheech and Chong. In 1998, the movie "Half Baked" tried (and failed) to
recapture the shaggy magic of doper humor, while a year later an
atrocious horror parody called "Idle Hands" combined druggie
stereotypes with enough gore to make Joe Lieberman faint.

But in recent movies, as in life, most marijuana users are not
irresponsible slackers but productive members of society.

In many films, the casual use of marijuana is a way of underscoring
that a character is unpretentious or likable.