“Doobious Sources,” a politically incorrect flick that has the makings of a modern stoner classic, is tailor-made for an afternoon on the couch.
The dramedy, which is available via cable and video on demand, plays on pop culture topics such as Craigslist and made-to-sell fabricated video journalism.
In the opening scene, the quote “A free press is the cornerstone of democracy” sets an ironic tone for what is to come. Short and sweet, “Doobious Sources” will hold your attention with a smart subplot and enough dumb behavior to take you from 4:20 to 6:00 in the flash of a lighter.
The Reg (Jeff Lorch) and Zorn (Jason Weissbrod) are a couple of pot-loving freelance video journalists who opt to expose scammers and con men rather than cover vapid celebrity scandals and fluff pieces. However, there aren’t always enough hard-hitting stories to go around, and the pair ends up clouding their Robin Hood version of truthful reporting with weed smoke and sleazy tactics to create news where there isn’t any.
One of their tainted stories comes back to bite their news outfit, which is appropriately dubbed Instant Karma productions.
A local well-to-do developer plots revenge on the duo for a story they made public at the expense of his marriage and business reputation. The stoners have to use their underhanded skills to survive.
The rest of the film provides a great commentary on sensationalistic journalism, as well as the battle between dudes just trying to get by and a class ever hungry for wealth and influence.
In the meantime, the two stoned protagonists are paranoid of each other, as well as the rest of the world. Each is constantly filming the other with small handheld cameras in hopes of catching him in a moment of dishonesty or capturing a good story on the fly. Most of the footage they shoot becomes the audience’s point-of-view.
The device works well to cover up the fact that you are not watching a big-budget Hollywood blockbuster and also helps further the storyline of the sleaziness of fake news.
“Doobious Sources” brings together all the stoner movie must haves: hallucination sequence, time distortion, the munchies and lots of pot smoking. There are some cool plot twists at the end that will give you “Pulp Fiction” flashbacks, too.
The Reg and Zorn are imperfect creatures, but as a moviegoer, you always root for the underdogs, right?
The film is available now through Dish Network, Cox, Charter, Verizon Fios, iTunes, Amazon Instant, Google Play and Vudu. Visit doobioussources.com for more information.
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