A faded VHS cover of the 1987 film.

For anyone worried that Humboldt County might be losing its cannabis clout, fear not: Here comes “Ganjasaurus Rex.”

Disney-owned streaming giant Hulu is celebrating the upcoming stoner holiday of 4/20 with an anthology of documentary shorts — aptly titled “4X20: Quick Hits” — that includes a segment on the low-budget, Humboldt-filmed creature feature from 1987.

Here’s the blurb from Hulu:

“The Legend of Ganjasaurus Rex,” directed by Alex Ross Perry, (“Pavements,” “Videoheaven”), celebrates a Humboldt County cult classic film. Made by local pot growers as an act of protest against the War on Drugs, this “comically dreadful” film was panned by critics as “one of the worst movies of all time,” before becoming a beloved local legend.

And here’s the trailer:

###

During my first career as a video store clerk/manager, the VHS copy of “Ganjasaurus Rex” didn’t get rented often, but when it did it was typically brought to the counter with the likes of “Up In Smoke,” “The Harder They Come,” “Waking Life,” and “Baraka.” 

But the ultra-low-budget movie spread beyond the Emerald Triangle, invading video stores across the country and eventually becoming something of a stoner cult classic.

Set during the height of the federal government’s notorious Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP), the movie “captures the spirit of the back-to-the-land movement in Humboldt County — depicting how local communities peacefully resisted government efforts to eradicate their cannabis gardens, culture and way of life.”

That quote’s from the promotional blurb for a recent screening and discussion of the film as part of Cal Poly Humboldt’s Cannabis Studies Program.

You can actually watch “Ganjasaurus Rex” in its entirety on YouTube, but if you’re looking for the historical and cultural context around it, you’ll have to wait a couple of weeks. 

Produced by Jimmy Kimmel, “4X20: Quick Hits” debuts on April 20 (of course). Here are synopses of the other three segments:

  • “Highly Unlikely,” directed by Brent Hodge (“I Am Chris Farley,” “Freaks and Geeks: The Documentary”) recounts how Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle ended up on the big screen. With two unknown Asian American lead actors, this unexpected stoner classic has become synonymous with weed since its release in 2004.
  • “High Times,” directed by Kyle Thrash (“The Turnaround,” “The Seat”), tells the story of High Times Magazine and its founder, Tom Forcade. Motivated by the Free Press movement, Forcade smuggled cannabis to pay for a magazine that impacted Marijuana culture forever.
  • “Bong Voyage,” directed by Todd Kapostasy (“Rodman: For Better or Worse,” “Meddling”) focuses on Deadhead and hand-blown glass artist Jason Harris. After building the most well-known bong company in the world, the federal government set its sights on Jason and the paraphernalia industry with Operation Pipe Dreams.