Screen = {Gender} Racial Stereotypes

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Racial stereotypes in Harold and Kumar go to White Castle

Danny Leiner's motion picture Harold and Kumar go to White Castle was issued in 2004 and expresses divisive topics relating to drugs and race. The fact that the film involves Asian-American actors makes it even more interesting, considering that international audiences fond of Hollywoodian movies are accustomed to a standard cast of famous actors. However, despite of the ethnicity of these actors, they do not put across stereotypical behavior and they simply act as two stoners experiencing an adventure.

The film is focused on Harold Lee (John Cho) and Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) as they go through a series of events more or less fortunate for them and as they struggle to reach their destination - a White Castle food court, consequent to smoking marijuana and seeing an advertisement on TV. While their journey initially appears to be easy, it gradually becomes obvious that conditions are critical and that this respective trip is the actual topic that the movie concentrates on.

Both Harold and Kumar seem to be intellectual individuals who are capable of doing a lot of things right, but who are simply reluctant to act in accordance with society's legislations. They appear to be aware of stereotypes associated with them and their cultural background and appear to be intimidated as a consequence of following a pattern that they consider to be characteristic to individuals with the same ethnicity as them. From the very first moments of the film viewers are likely to observe that the other characters in the film are inclined to express discriminatory attitudes in regard to Harold and Kumar. The trailer of the film actually describes the central characters as "that Asian guy from American Pie" and "that Indian guy from Van Wilder."

Many viewers are going to consider that Harold and Kumar go to White Castle is a discriminatory motion picture and that its attempt to satirize society's customs are not enough to compensate for the stereotypes that it puts across. Even with the fact that the central characters seem perfectly "American" when considering their behavior, their accents, and their thinking, other non-American characters in the film are portrayed using stereotypes. Kumar's father, the gas station operator, Harold's girlfriend Cindy Kim, and the Indian cashier all act in accordance with South Asian stereotypes. While Kumar appears to speak perfect English, he is afraid of being like his father, who speaks English with an Indian accent and has a job that is seemingly characteristic for all Indian individuals in the U.S. Asian people are not the only ones being shown unfavorably in this film, as the "extreme" gang is obviously meant to relate to rebel American teenagers who express no interest in morality and who only seem to be motivated by absurd values and goals.

The very fact that Harold and Kumar go through all this trouble with the purpose of being able to eat hamburgers make it possible for viewers to relate to the fact that South-East Asian individuals are primarily interested in interacting with the American Dream represented by one of the concepts that are probably the most characteristic to American culture: hamburgers. Surprisingly, Asian-American individuals are not likely to identify with the main characters, as they express thinking and behavior that is typical for Americans. Americans in general are probable to feel confusion as a result of seeing this film, considering that it presents Asian characters as putting across stereotypical attitudes and as being perfectly American.

When considering Harold and Kumar, the American Dream deals with more than just the economic aspect of the issue. They are already in a position where they have access to money and where they have the opportunity to become rich. Their problem with the U.S. As a whole is more complex and it deals with fighting a concept of a dominant white culture. While they find it perfectly normal to be interested in "owning land, one of more homes, several cars, expensive jewelry and clothing" (Benshoff & Griffin p. 158) (they consider themselves no different from an ordinary American in this situation), their main focus lies in having everyone around them accept them as equals, as from their perspective, "the American Dream can simply be freedom of want" (Benshoff & Griffin p. 158).

Alongside of Harold and Kumar, viewers realize that society is no longer a place where people are judged on account of their wealth, intelligence, and background. Individuals in this film are mainly interested in race and social status is apparently determined by one's ethnicity. It is almost as if the central characters need to negotiate in order for people that they interact with to consider them worthy of being assimilated in an all-American community. While they would normally be categorized as middle class individuals, their race appears to take them below that level as white Americans persecute them and as they experience frustrations as a result of the fact that they struggle to act as "American" as possible.

The scene when Harold and Kumar face a group of hillbillies emphasizes the way that the American society in the film feels in regard to the two characters. While the white group obviously discriminate the non-English speaking cashier, they express no discrimination in regard to the main characters. However, the fact that Kumar speaks Hindu with the cashier makes it possible for viewers to understand that they are essentially the same. In addition to that, his tendency to intervene when matters get out of hand further contributes to the belief that Kumar is also being persecuted, as a dominant white society seems unwilling to accept him. Although Kumar seems to be very different from the cashier (especially considering that the latter appears to be unable to integrate in an American community) the fact that he yields to the hillbilly's insistency and his overall acceptance of this situation puts across the concept that he acknowledges his position and tries to make the best out of it without struggling to go further.