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When it comes to comedy, I have to say that I can be kind of picky. As much as America's Funniest Home Videos may perpetuate the idea that there are certain things that will be funny even if repeated over and over and over again, there are some gags that just get old. So as much as I enjoy a good comedy club, when I go to see a movie, I expect to see an actual story. And in a world where the great expanse of human imperfection introduces hilarious new situations every single day, there's a part of me that just can't deal with an entire movie that never takes its jokes anywhere outside the bedroom or the bathroom.

But as hard a time as I can give a comedy, I must admit that on those rare occasions when I greet the newest comedy on the block with absolutely no expectations and no intention of taking it seriously, no matter how many stereotypes it relies on to fuel its laughter, how many crotch shots and boob zooms contribute to its rating, or how many jokes are clearly the product of intoxication, I actually have been known to enjoy a good laugh at the expense of nothing more than back-to-back ridiculousness. And the other night, the comedy that did that was none other than Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay.

If you're not familiar with the story from their first adventure, all you really need to know is that Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) are best buddies, and they like to smoke pot. Because they like to smoke pot, the second movie opens with Harold and Kumar getting ready to go to Amsterdam. Because Kumar likes to smoke pot so much, they are mistaken for terrorists midway through their flight and sent to Guantanamo Bay. And because they really aren't terrorists, the rest of the movie is pretty much spent hitting every stereotype between Guantanamo Bay and Texas as the best friends try to outrun the government officials hot on their pursuit.

Along their journey, the young men encounter illegal Cuban immigrants, kindhearted Birmingham "gangsters," incestuous backwoods farmers, beer guzzling Klansmen, a shroom popping Neal Patrick Harris, shotgun wielding Texas whores, greasy young politicians, slimy middle-age bureaucrats, and, of course, a pot-smoking George W. himself. All the jokes you expect to be there are. There actually is a cyclops son locked in the farmers' basement. Neal Patrick Harris is pretty much a god on drugs. George W. is in fact fed up that he is in his sixties and still taking orders from his father. And of course, throughout it all, the government is nothing other than a bunch of power-hungry racist hypocrites who would be sooner found using the Bill of Rights as toilet paper than actually giving its guarantees to U.S. citizens.

But amid all the expected racial, sexual, and political humor that can possibly be dished up, the journey that Harold and Kumar take also has a message. Although the main drive behind the young men's adventures is the fact that they are fugitives from the government, they are also pushed forward by their own more personal motives. If betrayal and utter absence of loyalty are what pursue them from the outside, loyalty and friendship are what push them forward from within. At no point does Harold forget the woman he was supposed to meet in Amsterdam and now may never see again. Although their intended destination does in fact hold a possible solution to their situation, Kumar's main reason for heading there is to stop the woman he loves from marrying another man. And as the two friends run into mess after mess after mess, it is the fight for the survival of their friendship that takes center stage.

Although Harold nearly disowns Kumar for getting them into the entire situation in the first place, as a sensitive Texas whore tells him, "a good friend is hard to come by." And in the end, both Kumar and Harold prove that that is who they are. While Kumar may be oblivious to his fault in getting both he and Harold into the mess they find themselves, he finally sees the pain he has caused Harold and apologizes. And while Harold may have been ready to drop Kumar off the edge of a cliff on numerous occasions, when Kumar is falling to his death, Harold reaches out to save him.

If the message that friendship is about loving each other despite our flaws isn't clear enough yet, Kumar further reiterates it upon arrival at the wedding of the woman he loves. To put it simply, the man Vanessa (Danneel Harris) is about to marry has a certain idea of who she must be and will probably only love her if she makes sure to fit that image for as long as they both shall live. Kumar, however, loves her for who she is, imperfections and all. And when she needs a bit of saving, he is the one to jump right into the ring, sacrifice a bit of his own dignity to get her out, and carry her away to a place where she is loved just as she is.

The movie may be absolutely ridiculous. Every joke could probably be found floating around some drunken frat party any night of the week. But for an hour and half of easy laughs and a story of friendship and love that can't help but make you smile at least a little bit, Harold and Kumar cut the cake yet again. And although I would be slightly worried about getting arrested for possession, I must say that Harold and Kumar are also two men I would be happy to call my friends. For whatever might come our way, I know that I could always count on them to stand by my side, to make me smile, and to love me just as I am.