The Hangover
Tragedy, as they say, is easy; comedy is hard. Indeed, it’s nearly impossible to describe exactly what’s wrong with The Hangover, a raucous farce whose belly laughs are forever just out of reach. There’s so much going for it, too: a clever idea, a script that knows the value of withholding vital information, a plethora of genuinely imaginative comic ideas and performances that, while not top-notch, are far from unfunny.
So, frankly, what the fuck? You got me. All I know is The Hangover is hypothetically hilarious, but only fitfully amusing in practice—a case study in the difference between finding something funny and actually laughing at it.
One of those what-happens-in-Vegas setups—and infinitely less icky than, say, What Happens in Vegas—The Hangover concerns a group of buds who venture to Sin City for their friend’s stag night. The film very smartly elides the boozy night altogether, fading back in on blacked-out memories and a string of non-sequitur clues: a sword in an apple, a missing tooth, a growling tiger, an anonymous toddler, plus the now missing groom.
The remaining trio, of wisely varying modes—the blond-streaked douche (Bradley Cooper), the anal clean-cut guy (Ed Helms) and the freaky slob (Zach Galifianakis)—venture off to piece the night together.
Jon Lucas and Scott Moore’s script supplies them with plenty of additional hijinks, from Helms’ new stripper-escort wife (Heather Graham), a stolen cop car, angry Chinese mafia types and a warbling Mike Tyson. Most of this, of course, can be found in the rather gut-busting trailer, making this also a case study in the disparity between trailers and the films they advertise. Trailers, after all, suggest and hint at without the need to follow-through. As a reasonably talented lowbrow-director (Road Trip and Old School’s Todd Phillips) and a game cast plod, not coast, through the labyrinthine plot, it becomes clear the film is least disappointing as a three-minute block of madness. (See also the film’s amazing end credits sequence.)
The exception, and ace in the hole, is Galafianakis, who’s simply too weird for this or any movie. Not content to radiate mere slobitude, the oft-queasy comic delights in throwing in unsettling asides, among them that he’s probably a convicted pedo. His unpolished, borderline-amateur timing provides unpredictable jolts to a movie desperately in need of them.
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1. Anonymous said... on Jun 4, 2009 at 11:10AM
“PW moview reviews are the most consistently negative ones I have ever read. It is ridiculous.”
2. Matt Prigge said... on Jun 4, 2009 at 01:50PM
“This, in an issue that's half positive? And in reply to a review that's mixed? If you'll bother looking at the caps written by Sean Burns and myself, you'll find that we're pretty evenly split between positive and negative. It's called passion, son. I myself busted out an A- last week! And a shitload of B+s the week before! But let me guess, you're one of those "why don't you just turn your brain off and enjoy" creeps that pester movie discussions. After all, you can't even be bothered to come up with an internet handle.”
3. Padraic said... on Jun 5, 2009 at 01:38PM
“Have to disagree that the PW reviews are always negative. Probably just a limited sample, or Anon just likes bad movies.”
4. Ryder J. said... on Jun 10, 2009 at 04:51AM
“Well-written review. In addition, Zach belongs to the main cast of the box office movie. Apparently, “The Hangover” is a worthy entrant into the “guy movie” hall of fame. It’s got laughs, drugs, tomfoolery, bodily harm, strippers, and a Mike Tyson cameo. The movie is about a trip to Las Vegas for a bachelor party, and the events of which are recounted as the characters sober up, and look into payday loans to cover the money they spent. Films detailing "lost weekends" spent in Sin City are becoming a genre unto themselves, as the town is noted for a touch of Bacchanalian excess, with tradition extending before Hunter Thompsons' landmark novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Still, there ought to be plenty of payday cash for the producers if receipts match “The Hangover" reviews. For further reading, follow the link: http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/06/05/the-hangover-reviews-promise-lots-laughs-cash/”