Whoever thought an all-night hunt for burgers would  turn into a wry commentary on American culture? Such was the case with Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, an unassuming stoner comedy boasting a surprising amount of smarts. After generating all sorts of laughs with raunchy gags and jabs at ethnic stereotypes, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay ups the ante and even surpasses the original in sheer hilarity and intelligence. 

Guantanamo Bay kicks off mere minutes after the ending of White Castle, with Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) on their way to Amsterdam. An unfortunate misunderstanding involving a bong on the flight ends up with the guys being branded terrorists and shipped off to prison in Cuba's Guantanamo Bay. Luckily, they manage to escape not long after their arrival, setting off a massive manhunt headed by an over-zealous Homeland Security official (Rob Corddry). As Harold and Kumar make their way to Texas, hoping to get in touch with the one guy who could clear their names, the road trip they endure becomes just as insane as their first one, replete with stylish rednecks, a Klan meeting, and, of course, yet another run-in with the sex-crazed Neil Patrick Harris (as "himself").

If White Castle wanted to show the fratboy comedy as a genre that shouldn't belong exclusively to white guys, then it's fair to say Guantanamo Bay is a little more grandiose in terms of scope. Writer/directors Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg expand their targets to encompass the most politically and ethnically sensitive sections of America. Fortunately, this sequel is not a crass mess carelessly offending everything in sight. It tackles touchy topics and still leaves the audience in stitches. Maybe that's because the filmmakers didn't try to make something powerful enough to change the world. They merely took a look at life in post-9/11 America through the eyes of two naive potheads. Hurwitz and Schlossberg do have an agenda here (how else would you explain the movie's depiction of President Bush as the veritable king of all dope fiends?), but they're not shoving it down your throat, rather letting the chips fall where they may and hoping viewers have a few good laughs along the way.

For those who may feel uneasy with the idea of a politically-savvy mainstream comedy, I assure you  Guantanamo Bay offers up the finest selection of pot, sex, and bodily function jokes this side of an American Pie sequel. Some sections of the film appear so random, you've no choice but to chuckle (unlike Meet the Spartans, where every single joke was telegraphed before you even got to the theater). What also helps everything come together is the teamwork of Cho and Penn as our hapless heroes, a perfectly endearing straight man/goofy guy team for the slacker generation. Their intermittent bickering and Kumar's pining for an ex may get a bit tiring at times, but it fails to prevent you from having a ball laughing at the duo's misadventures. Plus, Daily Show alum Corddry comes across as quite possibly the most hilarious racist to grace the silver screen.

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay won't change the face of comedy as we know it, but this amusing sequel is not only funny -- it's smart to boot. 

MY RATING: *** (out of ****)

(Released by Warner Bros. Pictures and rated "R" for strong crude sexual content, graphic nudity, pervasive language and drug use.)