White Castle

White Castle may refer to:

Castles

Settlements

Literature

Food and drink

Films

Harold & Kumar

Harold & Kumar is the name for a series of American stoner comedy films starring John Cho (Harold) and Kal Penn (Kumar). The first film, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, was released on July 30, 2004, by New Line Cinema and spawned a sequel titled Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, released four years later. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, the third installment of the series, opened nationwide in the U.S. on November 4, 2011.

Despite some mixed critical responses, the series has been a financial success. The three films, produced on a total budget of US$40 million, grossed $102.8 million worldwide. In addition to their box office grosses, the films were extremely successful on home video. The series has been released on both Blu-ray and DVD.

Films

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)

Harold Lee and Kumar Patel are two Asian-American (Korean and Indian) stoners who get the munchies and embark on a quest throughout New Jersey for White Castle burgers after seeing them advertised on TV. On their way they encounter many obstacles, including a gang of extreme sports punks, a raccoon with an attitude, a group of Asian nerds, a racist police department, a cheetah that has escaped from a zoo, and an out-of-control Neil Patrick Harris.

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (alternatively known as Harold & Kumar Get the Munchies) is a 2004 American stoner comedy film and the first installment of the Harold & Kumar series. The film was written by Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, and directed by Danny Leiner.

The story follows Harold Lee (John Cho) and Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) as they decide to go to the fast food chain White Castle after smoking cannabis, but end up on a series of comical misadventures along the way.

The film also features Fred Willard, Paula Garcés, Anthony Anderson, Dan Bochart, Ethan Embry, Jamie Kennedy, Bobby Lee, Christopher Meloni, Ryan Reynolds, Shaun Majumder, David Krumholtz, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Malin Åkerman, and Neil Patrick Harris, who plays a fictionalized version of himself.

Plot

Investment banker Harold Lee (John Cho) is persuaded by his colleagues Billy and JD to do their work while they leave for the weekend. Elsewhere, Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) attends a medical school interview at the behest of his father but intentionally botches it to prevent getting accepted. Upon arriving home, Harold meets his Latina neighbor Maria (Paula Garcés) but is unable to admit his feelings for her. After smoking marijuana with Kumar, and seeing an advertisement for White Castle on TV, the pair decide to get hamburgers to satisfy their hunger. Traveling to the location of the nearest White Castle, the pair find it has been replaced by "Burger Shack" but are informed that there is another White Castle that is open 24 hours in Cherry Hill.

John Cho

John Yohan Cho (born June 16, 1972) is a South Korean born American actor and musician. He starred as Harold Lee in the Harold & Kumar films and played the character John, MILF Guy No. 2 who popularized the term "MILF" in the American Pie films. He also starred in the critically acclaimed Asian American films Better Luck Tomorrow and Yellow.

Cho has portrayed the Star Trek character Hikaru Sulu in the Star Trek reboot film series, has starred in the Total Recall remake and the comedy Identity Thief. On television, he played FBI agent Demetri Noh in the sci-fi television drama FlashForward, as Chau Presley on the sitcom Off Centre and his recurring role as Andy Brooks in the horror drama Sleepy Hollow. He played Henry Higgs on the sitcom Selfie, co-starring Karen Gillan where he became the first Asian-American romantic male lead on American television.

Early life

Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea, and moved to the United States in 1978. He was raised in Los Angeles, where his family settled after living in Houston, Seattle, Daly City, California, and Monterey Park, California. His father was a minister in the Church of Christ, and was originally from North Korea. Cho graduated from Herbert Hoover High School, in Glendale, California, in 1990. He then attended the University of California, Berkeley, graduating in 1996 with a BA degree in English, and taught English at Pacific Hills School in West Hollywood, California while working at East West Players's theater in downtown Los Angeles.

Kal Penn

Kal Penn (born Kalpen Suresh Modi; April 23, 1977) is an American actor, producer, and civil servant.

As an actor, he is known for his role portraying Dr. Lawrence Kutner on the television program House, as well as the character Kumar Patel in the Harold & Kumar film series. He is also recognized for his performance in the critically acclaimed film, The Namesake. Additionally, Penn has taught at the University of Pennsylvania in the Cinema Studies Program as a visiting lecturer.

On April 8, 2009, it was announced that Penn would join the Obama administration as an Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement. This necessitated that his TV character, Lawrence Kutner, be written out of House. Penn resigned his post as Barack Obama's Associate Director of Public Engagement on June 1, 2010, for a brief return to his acting career. He filmed the third installment of the Harold & Kumar series, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, and subsequently returned to the White House Office of Public Engagement as an Associate Director. In July 2011, he again left the White House to accept a role in the hit television series How I Met Your Mother.