The defence The Popcorn Loyalist
“It owes the canon nothing.”
The movie pursues immediacy and audience pleasure without begging institutions to certify its worth.
Back to trending 
Nice Dreams
Comedy · 1981
Nice Dreams - it rhymes with ice creams. And that's what Cheech and Chong are selling in this thoroughly wacky comedy. The outrageous, permanently spaced-out duo sells enough of their "specially mixed" ice cream to take the cash and realize their fondest dreams: new guitars, islands in the sun and beautiful women. But, of course, not everything goes as planned. While celebrating their wealth in a new wave Chinese restaurant, Cheech meets his long-lost love Donna, and promptly escorts her to her posh penthouse. He soon learns, however, that Donna's boyfriend, an ex-con named Animal, is on his way to her boudoir. Meanwhile, Chong has unwittingly exchanged all their money for a worthless bank check - and the only way to get it back is to escape into a nearby insane asylum.
Movie details
Nice Dreams
“The story of two enterprising young men who make an amazing amount of money selling ice cream.”
1981 Comedy 1h 28m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
5.8 / 10
Community rating
Nice Dreams - it rhymes with ice creams. And that's what Cheech and Chong are selling in this thoroughly wacky comedy. The outrageous, permanently spaced-out duo sells enough of their "specially mixed" ice cream to take the cash and realize their fondest dreams: new guitars, islands in the sun and beautiful women. But, of course, not everything goes as planned. While celebrating their wealth in a new wave Chinese restaurant, Cheech meets his long-lost love Donna, and promptly escorts her to her posh penthouse. He soon learns, however, that Donna's boyfriend, an ex-con named Animal, is on his way to her boudoir. Meanwhile, Chong has unwittingly exchanged all their money for a worthless bank check - and the only way to get it back is to escape into a nearby insane asylum.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Nice Dreams?
For the defence
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Big-Idea Head
“You watch with your brain, not your gut.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas
Comedy · 2011
Six years have elapsed since Guantanamo Bay, leaving Harold and Kumar estranged from one another with very different families, friends and lives. But when Kumar arrives on Harold's doorstep during the holiday season with a mysterious package in hand, he inadvertently burns down Harold's father-in-law's beloved Christmas tree. To fix the problem, Harold and Kumar embark on a mission through New York City to find the perfect Christmas tree, once again stumbling into trouble at every single turn.
How to Murder Your Wife
Comedy · 1965
Stanley Ford is a successful cartoonist and happily single. That is, until he gets drunk at a friend's bachelor party and impulsively proposes to the beautiful woman who pops out of the cake. Once sober, he regrets the decision, but she won't agree to a divorce. Stanley jokingly vents his frustrations in his comic strip by having the main character kill his wife. But when his actual wife goes missing and Stanley is arrested for her murder, he has a change of heart.
Jimmy Carr: Natural Born Killer
Comedy · 2024
Jimmy Carr refutes the idea that you can't joke about anything these days with his edgy takes on gun control, religion, cancel culture and consent.
The Sweet East
Comedy · 2023
A picaresque journey through contemporary America, undertaken by a young woman granted access to the strange sects and cults that proliferate in this country by a series of gatekeepers eager to win her over.
Who Is Cletis Tout?
Action · 2001
With a hitman’s gun aimed at him, Finch tells the story of how he broke out of jail, fell in love, and took the identity of a man wanted by the Mafia.
Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself
Comedy · 2006
A recorded live performance of ventriloquist Jeff Dunham portrays a comedian whose revival of an old-fashioned art has made ventriloquism more relevant to modern societal concerns. Starring his six main characters, from Bubba Jay, a Nascar-obsessed hick, to Peanut, a flamboyant gay monkey, Dunham’s puppets have dirty but inoffensive senses of humor that mock the American Dream.
Pineapple Express
Action · 2008
A stoner and his dealer are forced to go on the run from the police after the pothead witnesses a cop commit a murder.
The Overnight
Mystery · 2015
Alex, Emily, and their son, RJ, are new to Los Angeles. A chance meeting at the park introduces them to the mysterious Kurt, Charlotte, and Max. A family “playdate” becomes increasingly interesting as the night goes on.
Hard to Die
Action · 1990
While doing the inventory for a lingerie outlet in a high rise office building, five attractive women are terrorized by a series of bizarre killings. They suspect that the strange janitor, who witnessed another series of killings six months previously, is at the bottom of the whole thing. Little do they know the real horror that they face in the end.
Stretch
Action · 2014
A hard-luck limo driver struggling to go straight and pay off a debt to his bookie takes on a job with a crazed passenger whose sought-after ledger implicates some seriously dangerous criminals.
Where it lives
Watch in your region.
Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.
Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Tommy Chong
Written by
Tommy Chong · Cheech Marin
Cheech Marin
Cheech
Tommy Chong
Chong
Stacy Keach
Sergeant Stedenko
Timothy Leary
Self
E
Evelyn Guerrero
Donna
Paul Reubens
Howie Hamburger Dude
Suzanne Kent
Sidney the Agent
Court is in session
Put Nice Dreams on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Big-Idea Head
“Easy pleasure, short half-life.”
It moves efficiently through the moment but offers little reason to keep arguing once the credits end.