Lifestyle & Wellness
Movies for an Arete State of Mind
June 01, 2026
Bring together two or more cannabis connoisseur and eventually - especially if their butts are down, their feet are up, and their minds elevated - the chatter will turn to the standards. Music. Video games. Movies. And of course food. What is it about reefer that makes us gravitate towards these topics? Madness?
Hopefully, you've already gathered from the title that this article is focused on movies. Not just any movies, but movies for those who understand weed is not a bad four-letter word. Movies you'd want to watch with your friend Mary Jane.
Before we go any further, let's clear the air of any potential misunderstandings. We're not interested in regurgitating the usual Hollywood tropes. What you're not going to find here are cliches such as:
- Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
- Friday
- Pineapple Express
- Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
- Up In Smoke
- Half Baked
- Etc.
We all know that list. There are ten or so films that are mentioned every time, all the time, but that everyone has seen a thousand times. Yes, all great in their own right, but not the subject of today's higher level canna-isseur discussion.
You know the drill. There's no need to hash - pun intended - out another version of that list.
Instead, we exhaled, and we asked, "What are the movies that pair well with an Arete state of mind?"
Disclaimer: This (below) is one take on answering that question. It's not intended to be definitive. It's not the 10 Commandments (i.e., written in stone). Ask us tomorrow or next weekend - perhaps when we're under the influence of a different strain - and the movies and reviews are likely to change. You know how that is, right?
The order they are listed in is 100% random. There is no number one or number two, and so on. That would take too much bandwidth and be an immediate buzzkill. We don't want that, do we?
Finally, it's worth mentioning that the working title for this piece was "Movies for Stoner (But Not Stoner Movies)." Funny, but also not quite the vibe we were shooting for.
With all that said, we have divided our selections into three groups: Highly Recommended, Honorable Mention, and On the Bubble.
Highly Recommended
If these were flower, they would be listed in our Luxury THCa Flower collection. The best of the best, sir. Oops, wrong movie.
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0405296
An adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s 1977 novel of the same name, this rotoscoped sci-fi drama follows an undercover narcotics officer who becomes increasingly entangled in the very world he is tasked with investigating. As his identity fractures under surveillance, addiction, and paranoia, the line between observer and participant begins to dissolve in unsettling ways. Directed by Richard Linklater and starring Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, and Robert Downey Jr., with a soundtrack featuring Radiohead.
Arrival (2016)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2543164
In a word: Mind-blowing. Directed by Denis Villeneuve, this science fiction drama follows a linguist recruited by the U.S. military to communicate with mysterious alien visitors who have landed at multiple sites across the globe. As she deciphers their complex language, her perception of time, space, memory, and causality begins to fundamentally shift; ultimately reframing everything she understands about the human experience. Arrival stars Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker.
Brazil (1985)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088846
Starring Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro, and Kim Greist, and directed by Terry Gilliam. This Orwellian black comedy follows a low-level government clerk in a suffocating bureaucratic society who becomes entangled in a case of mistaken identity after a clerical error. As he tries to correct the mistake, the system around him only becomes more labyrinthine, absurd, and inescapable. "The most potent piece of satiric political cinema since Dr. Strangelove," said Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan about Brazil.
"The most potent piece of satiric political cinema since Dr. Strangelove," said Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan about Brazil.
The Fall (2006)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460791
Set in a 1920s hospital, this visually extravagant fantasy drama follows a hospitalized stuntman who begins telling an elaborate story to a young girl he befriends. As the narrative unfolds, the boundaries between imagination, memory, and emotional projection begin to blur, creating a layered tale of myth, grief, and escapism told across surreal, globe-spanning imagery. Directed by Tarsem Singh. Winner of the International Online Cinema Awards (INOCA) 2009 award for Best Costume Design (Eiko Ishioka).
Predestination (2014)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2397535
Directed by the Spierig Brothers, this science fiction thriller follows a temporal agent tasked with preventing future crimes by traveling through time to intervene in key moments before they occur. As his final mission unfolds, a tightly wound chain of events begins to challenge the very structure of identity, causality, and personal destiny, revealing a far more intricate loop than initially appears. Starring Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook and Noah Taylor. IMBD's Awards section lists 13 wins & 20 nominations total.
Mandy (2018)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6998518
Directed by Panos Cosmatos, and starring Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, and Linus Roache, this psychedelic revenge horror film follows a quiet logger whose isolated life is shattered when a cult descends on his home and takes everything from him. What follows is a slow-burning descent into grief, rage, and hallucination as he embarks on a violent, surreal campaign of vengeance in a world that feels increasingly unhinged and mythic. In December 2018, Esquire magazine named Mandy the top film in its "25 Best Movies of 2018 So Far".
Fantastic Planet (1973)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070544
This animated, surreal science fiction film is set on a distant planet where humans (known as “Oms”) live as oppressed beings under the rule of giant, intelligent alien overlords. As one Oms begins to acquire forbidden knowledge, tensions escalate into a broader struggle for survival, freedom, and understanding between two fundamentally unequal species. Fantastic Planet’s striking, dreamlike visual style and allegorical storytelling make it a landmark of experimental animation. Directed by René Laloux; the original title was: La planète sauvage.
Fantastic Planet’s striking, dreamlike visual style and allegorical storytelling make it a landmark of experimental animation.
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373469
This neo-noir crime comedy follows a small-time thief who accidentally stumbles into an acting audition and is swept into Hollywood’s underworld while trying to stay ahead of real criminals and increasingly complicated lies. When he is paired with a private investigator to prepare for a role, fiction and reality begin to blur in ways that spiral into murder, deception, and darkly comedic chaos. Directed by Shane "Lethal Weapon" Black, and starring Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, and Michelle Monaghan. In 2005, KKBB won the PFCS Award: Overlooked Film of the Year from the Phoenix Film Critics Society.
Go (1999)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0139239
This fast-paced ensemble crime comedy follows three interconnected stories unfolding over a chaotic 24-hour period, where a single drug deal gone wrong ripples outward into increasingly absurd and dangerous situations. As the night escalates across parties, casinos, and backroom schemes, characters repeatedly collide in unexpected ways, revealing the interconnected fallout of impulsive decisions. Starring: Sarah Polley, Katie Holmes, and Timothy Olyphant. Directed by Doug Lipman, a filmmaker and producer who directed Swingers, The Bourne Identity, Chaos Walking, Jumper, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Fair Game, Locked Down, Edge of Tomorrow, The Wall, and American Made.
Black Dynamite (2009)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1190536
Directed by Scott Sanders and starring Michael Jai White, this hyper-stylized action comedy parodies 1970s Blaxploitation films through an exaggerated revenge story involving government conspiracies, kung fu battles, and deliberately over-the-top performances. As Black Dynamite investigates the murder of his brother and a street-level drug crisis, the film escalates into absurd, self-aware genre satire where every scene doubles down on its own exaggeration. Also features Arsenio Hall and Tommy Davidson.
As Black Dynamite investigates the murder of his brother and a street-level drug crisis, the film escalates into absurd, self-aware genre satire where every scene doubles down on its own exaggeration.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1054606
A name-dropper cast including Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer, Lily Cole, Jude Law, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Tom Waits. This Terry Gilliam directed fantasy adventure follows an immortal showman who leads a travelling theatre troupe that offers audiences entry into a surreal, ever-shifting fantasy world through a magical mirror. As a Faustian bargain comes due and his past catches up with him, the troupe becomes entangled in a race to save his daughter and preserve the illusionary world he has built. In 2010, it received two Academy Award nominations.
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120735
This crime comedy, directed by Guy Ritchie, follows a group of East London friends who find themselves owing money to a ruthless gangster after a high-stakes card game goes wrong. That loss drops them into a rapidly escalating web of debt, double-crosses, and overlapping criminal schemes. As various gangs collide over stolen money and mistaken identities, the situation spirals into increasingly chaotic and violent consequences. Lock Stock is Ritchie’s breakout film, and the one that established his signature style. It also marks Jason Statham’s breakout role, alongside a cast of then-unknowns and real-life personalities, including Vinnie Jones and bare-knuckle boxer Lenny McLean. The film is also remembered for its slang-heavy dialogue and references to “copious amounts of ganja.” Speaking of crime and the police, Sting is in this one as well.
24 Hour Party People (2002)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274309
Directed by Michael Winterbottom, this semi-biographical music scene satire follows Manchester media personality Tony Wilson as he documents—and often accidentally shapes—the rise of the city’s post-punk and acid house movements through Factory Records and its chaotic roster of artists. Running in parallel to Wilson’s story is the trajectory of Joy Division’s transformation into New Order, charting one of modern music’s most unlikely evolutions. The film also brushes against the era of the Happy Mondays, whose hedonistic energy and drug-fuelled chaos helped define the scene’s later, more elevated phase. Blending fact and fiction, it repeatedly breaks the fourth wall, reframing cultural history as a self-aware story of ego, excess, and collapse. If you're into music and music history, don't miss 24 Hour Party People or the soundtrack.
Blending fact and fiction, it repeatedly breaks the fourth wall, reframing cultural history as a self-aware story of ego, excess, and collapse. If you're into music and music history, don't miss 24 Hour Party People or the soundtrack.
Late Night with the Devil (2023)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14966898
Set during a live 1970s late-night talk show broadcast, this horror film follows a ratings-struggling host who stages a special Halloween episode in a desperate bid to revive his career. As the live show unfolds, what begins as a controlled television spectacle gradually collapses into something far more disturbing, with the studio becoming the containment zone for forces that refuse to stay on air. Winner of multiple festival awards and a strong run of nominations (38 in total), it leans into a deliberately retro, B-movie broadcast aesthetic. Starring David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, and Ian Bliss.
Movies for an Arete State of Mind - Recap of our Highly Recommended
- A Scanner Darkly
- Arrival
- Brazil
- The Fall
- Predestination
- Mandy
- Fantastic Planet
- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
- Go
- Black Dynamite
- The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
- Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels
- 24 Hour Party People
- Late Night with The Devil
Honorable Mentions
More great stuff here, but we had to draw the line somewhere. Certainly, any of these could have moved up, and something else down. It's subjective. It's today's mood and moment. That's all.
Almost Famous (2000)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181875
Directed by Cameron Crowe, this semi-autobiographical coming-of-age film follows a teenage music journalist on tour with a rising rock band, Stillwater. Set in the early 1970s, starring Billy Crudup, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit, this film captures the chaotic glamour of rock-and-roll life while balancing it with a deeply personal story about identity, obsession, and belonging.
Cool Hand Luke (1967)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061512
Directed by Stuart Rosenberg and starring Paul Newman in one of his most iconic roles, this prison drama follows a defiant inmate in a Southern chain gang who refuses to conform to authority, becoming a symbol of stubborn individuality and quiet rebellion against the system. Newman's performance is very cool indeed.
Newman's performance is very cool indeed.
The Gentlemen (2019)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8367814
This crime comedy follows an American expat in London whose highly profitable cannabis empire becomes the target of schemes, betrayals, and escalating criminal chaos as rival players attempt to take control. Directed by the master of the crim-com genre, the notorious Guy Ritchie.
Idle Hands (1999)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0138510
Starring Seth Green (as Mick), this horror-comedy follows a typical teenage slacker whose hand becomes possessed. The hand begins committing violent acts of its own, forcing Mick into a chaotic fight to regain control of his increasingly uncontrollable life.
Clash of the Titans (1981)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082186
This fantasy epic follows Perseus as he battles mythological creatures and gods while attempting to save Princess Andromeda and fulfill his destiny in a world of ancient monsters and divine intervention. Directed by Desmond Davis and featuring pre-CGI stop-motion effects by the legendary Ray Harryhausen.
Re-Animator (1985)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089885
Directed by Stuart Gordon, this alt-horror cult classic follows a medical student who develops a serum capable of reanimating the dead, with increasingly grotesque and chaotic consequences as his experiments spiral far beyond ethical or scientific control. Spoiler alert: some of what unfolds is better experienced without prior knowledge, and part of Re-Animator’s appeal and impact comes from not knowing where it’s going. In short, add it to your "My List" and just watch it without overthinking it / over-researching it. You can thank us later.
Spoiler alert: some of what unfolds is better experienced without prior knowledge, and part of Re-Animator’s appeal and impact comes from not knowing where it’s going.
Enter the Void (2009)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1191111
Directed by Gaspar Noé, this psychedelic experimental drama, set in Tokyo, centers on the disembodied consciousness of a young drug dealer. Noé's story follows the soul as it drifts through memories, present trauma, and increasingly surreal visions of life, death, and rebirth.
Movies for an Arete State of Mind - Recap of our Honorable Mentions
- Almost Famous
- Cool Hand Luke
- The Gentlemen
- Idle Hands
- Clash of the Titans (1981)
- Re-Animator
- Enter the Void
On the Bubble
These were selections where sometimes it felt like they should be included, and other times it felt like not so much so. In the end, we left them in. Do you think that was the right thing to do?
Smiley Face (2007)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780608
After accidentally consuming an unexpectedly potent batch of her roommate's homemade baked goods, a struggling young actress bumbles through a surreal day of escalating misunderstandings while trying to complete errands and attend an important audition.
This Is the End (2013)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1245492
A party at James Franco’s house is interrupted by a series of catastrophic events, and a group of celebrity friends must survive escalating paranoia, panic, absurdity, and themselves as the world collapses around them.
Kid Cannabis (2014)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780548
A recent high school dropout and an aimless twenty-something discover an unguarded cross-border trail between the United States and Canada. Via this discovery, they build a wildly profitable smuggling operation that quickly becomes more than they bargained for.
Strange Wilderness (2008)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0489282
The incompetent hosts of a failing wildlife television show concoct a last-ditch effort to save their careers by heading into the wilderness in search of Bigfoot.
Out Cold (2001)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0253798
In a small Alaskan town, a group of snowboarders fights to preserve their simple-is-gooder lifestyle when a corporate ski resort threatens to take over their no-frills mountain.
The Wackness (2008)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1082886
During a sweltering summer in 1994 New York City, a lonely teenager forms an unusual bond with his emotionally unstable therapist while drifting through adolescence, isolation, and the city’s fading analog era. Solid soundtrack if you're into hip hop from the early 90s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VwN-KCpM6w
Dead Man on Campus (1998)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118301
Two college roommates, failing their classes after too much partying, attempt to exploit an odd academic loophole that grants automatic top grades if a roommate dies during the semester.
Detroit Rock City (1999)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165710
The year is 1978. Four teenage friends embark on a chaotic road trip to see their favorite band, KISS. Along the way, they steal, cheat, strip, and generally do whatever it takes to get to the concert.
Movies for an Arete State of Mind - Recap of our Honorable Mentions
- Smiley Face
- This Is the End
- Kid Cannabis
- Strange Wilderness
- Out Cold
- The Wackness
- Dead Man on Campus
- Detroit Rock City
Conclusion
So what do you think? How did we do? What would you rearrange? What would you remove? What would you add?
And in the words of the Hollywood icon Bugs Bunny, "That's all folks."
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