Sunday, June 7, 2009

A Tiger, A Baby, Asian Pube Action, and Heather Graham (The Hangover Review)

Fat Jesus, the bully from those movies, and Andy from The Office.

Don't get me wrong. The first impressions I had of The Hangover were generally the after-viewing impressions of What Happens in Vegas, which, like any Ashton Kutcher-Cameron Diaz movie, I found to be insufferable. Of course, if the beaten-to-death statement "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" holds true, then that concept is embodied to an extreme degree with this Todd Phillips-directed comedy.

I actually was expecting some kind of dark comedy, what with the serious concept of losing your best friend for whom he has a bachelor party made in his honor in Vegas for. But it was a fun movie, in the same vein that Steven Soderberg's Ocean's 11 was fun. The fun part in this movie was the sleuthing Bradley Cooper, Zach Galafinakis, and Ed Helms do in trying to find their lost groom after a serious night of drinking the town under the table. Note: Jaeger laced with roofies may not be a good idea two days before a wedding, but do what you will. It's not my life you're fucking up.

Anyways, the boys encounter some improbable twists and turns in this "retracing your steps" gone wild flick. From discovering you just stole a police car to discovering you just married a hooker/stripper who has a baby, the guys seem genuinely surprised to discover their drunken misdeeds. And all three main characters proudly got to shine in this feature. It's great to see Ed Helms step outside his Andy character from The Office and be the fish out of water character. Zach Galafianakis continues his quest to be the weirdest, funniest man that should be more widely known. I expected nothing more or less from the dude. And it's refreshing to see Bradley Cooper be the dependable, concerned friend who still has a mission in mind to find his best friend.

After watching 89 minutes of twisty turny types of humor, you will defintely get a payoff in what I considered the best closing credits in cinematic history.

Random notes: Ken Jeong never ceases to amaze me. No matter how caricaturized a character he plays, he knows how to deliver comically. Watch for him as the Asian man trapped in the trunk. Heather Graham never ceases to disappoint me. She, like her other roles, was good in this movie only for decoration. You know, more in the line of a desk lamp. Mike Tyson's appearance was underwhelming in this movie but he did provide a selling point in the movie's trailers. So kudos to that, I guess. And, I bet you didn't know this but remember the Jew-fro guy who was "here for the gangbang" in Old School. Well, that's Todd Phillips and he makes another Jew-fro appearance in this movie. Just thought you should know.

Here's the Restricted Trailer, which essentially ruins the movie for you. Have a nice day!

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