'The Night Before:' when 'Pineapple Express' meets 'The Polar Express'

Director Jonathan Levine, along with Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who previously all worked together on 2011's “50/50,” reunite in “The Night Before” (2015) to create a storybook-wonderland-turned-Christmas-stoner-comedy.

The first voice the audience hears is that of the faceless narrator, but true comedy fans will have no trouble recognizing the voice as Tracy Morgan's, whose rhyming skills are not to be trifled with. He introduces Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who is mourning the death of his parents. After about five seconds of introductory detail, his best friends Isaac (Seth Rogen) and Chris (Anthony Mackie) decide to “get him out of his funk, so they take him to a bar and get his ass drunk.” Thanks, Tracy.

It is the night before Christmas, and the trio takes on New York City’s greatest offerings with vigor, as they hit karaoke bars and toy stores with unsuspecting bystanders, marking the start of a yearly bromance-affirming tradition. Understandably, life happens, and the gang slowly lose interest in the ritual. Isaac is going to be a dad, Chris is becoming too famous to hang out with the other two and Ethan finds that it gets harder and harder for everyone to go on with this beloved tradition. For their (presumed) last big night together, Ethan scores three shiny tickets to the Nutcracka Ball, an ultra-exclusive bash that they had spent the last 15 years pining over -- a true Christmas miracle.

From then on, the film turns into a long pregame, and what takes place surely rivals anything the guys in “The Hangover” (2009) could have encountered. This plot starts to stretch a little thin the closer they get to the Ball, but it still manages to string along a series of unforgettable moments that will leave the audience laughing well after it leaves the theater. Isaac, for example, spends the majority of the night tripping on basically every drug in existence in a way that only Rogen is capable of selling. He steals the scene every time.

One of the best features in “The Night Before” is the onslaught of considerably high profile cameos, ranging from Mindy Kaling to Michael Shannon, who nails the role of philosophical pot dealer so successfully that the movie is definitely worth seeing if only just for the chance to experience every scene he's in. As the night drags on, the audience may start to wonder if the Nutcracka Ball will even be worth it. The answer is yes, a million times yes. Miley Cyrus even gives a show-stopping performance of “Wrecking Ball” (2013), making it clear that the song will never lose its power.

Unfortunately, there are several moments that run a little long and are hard to believe in light of how realistic the main characters' friendship seems to be. Nevertheless, fans of Rogen’s previous work in “Neighbors” (2014) or even “This Is The End” (2013) will enjoy the antics in "The Night Before" all the same. Only time will tell if it will become a holiday comedy favorite, but, for the time being, it will surely be a great stocking stuffer for moviegoers to enjoy with their age-appropriate buds. Key (hyphenated) word: age-appropriate.