a/k/a Tommy Chong

2006 Documentary

When comedy legend Tommy Chong was arrested in 2003 and given a nine-month prison sentence for the manufacture and sale of drug paraphernalia, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft's revamped war on drugs soared, like a mighty eagle stricken with vertigo in mid-flight, to new levels of absurdity. Fortunately, filmmaker Josh Gilbert's cameras were rolling at the time, offering viewers a firsthand account of the vengeful American justice system in action. In addition to glamorizing drug use, prosecutors argued that Chong was also guilty of trivializing efforts by law enforcement agencies to combat drug proliferation. When all was said and done, Chong, along with 54 others, was indicted on federal charges. For two years, Gilbert's prying lens followed the highly publicized case, allowing an amusing and sometimes frightening portrayal of eroding civil liberties in modern-day America. more..

Director: Josh Gilbert

Reviews

  • Chong does his time (nine months) and has the last laugh, emerging as a born-again activist-survivor of the culture wars.

    Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly

    19 January 2013

  • Tells the depressing, often ridiculous and generally enraging story of how and why Mr. Chong, an extremely laid-back and genial camera presence, ended up doing time in the minimum-security Taft Correctional Institution in Taft, Calif.

    Manohla Dargis - The New York Times

    19 January 2013

  • This is a small film, but it moved me and made me angry. Both reactions, in this context, are worthwhile.

    Andrew O'Hehir - Salon.com

    19 January 2013

  • This isn't a great piece of nonfiction filmmaking, but it has its moments.

    Wesley Morris - The Boston Globe

    19 January 2013

  • How the feds inadvertently resurrected the performing career of stoner comic Tommy Chong by busting him is the ironic subtext of Josh Gilbert's one-sided documentary a/k/a Tommy Chong.

    Lou Lumenick - New York Post

    19 January 2013

Awards

  • Best Documentary

    San Francisco Indiefest (2006)

  • Best Documentary

    U.S. Comedy Arts Festival (2006)