It’s no surprise that people love to get freebies, especially when it’s tied into the entertainment industry. Stand-up comedian Adam Hartle co-wrote and produced the lighthearted (and lightheaded) documentary Mile High: The Comeback of Cannabis, which combines comedy performances with a close look at Colorado’s recent legalization of recreational marijuana use. Hartle’s got quite a unique way of trying to get audiences to check his movie out, too: he’s giving away free weed.
Some of you may have already stopped reading in order to figure out locations where Hartle and Mile High director Adam Hashem are screening the film. For the next three nights (July 8-10), Hartle will be showing the flick at the Mayan Theater in Denver, Colorado, and he’ll personally be standing outside to welcome everyone. Some welcomes will undoubtedly be just, "Hey, thanks for coming," but others will be paired with a little bag of doobage. Here’s Hartle explaining it, according to Deadline.
"I’ll be standing outside the Mayan and Boulder theaters before each screening this week, handing out a small amount of legal marijuana to anyone over 21 with a valid ID to take home to enjoy responsibly. No purchase necessary, but we highly encourage you to stay and watch the film. "
So you don’t even have to stay and watch the movie once you’ve received your gift, but where’s the fun in that? (I’m betting there will be a sizable turnover in the "I just have to run to my car for a second," crowd.) It’s hard to imagine a better pairing than pot and a movie filled with pot comedy and pro-marijuana stories. Free Valium with Transformers: Age of Extinction? Perhaps.
"We’ve shown this film to a few test audiences so far," said first-time doc maker Hashem, "and what we’ve found is the 20- to 40-year-old demographic who have used cannabis before absolutely love it, and the older crowd who hasn’t find it less favorable." That’s no big shocker really. Still, this is more of a focused documentary than something like Doug Benson’s over-indulgent Super High Me, though not as rigid as Ron Mann’s Grass. Check out the Mile High trailer below.
Unfortunately, the film’s website states that the Boulder theater shows have been "postponed until fall semester." I’m guessing Hartle will have a better idea of how this whole "free weed" promotion will work by the time the fall rolls around. Maybe the theater can make a deal with some local food trucks to post up out front to handle the munchies overload. Call it a joint venture.
