’The Hangover’: Simple, Raunchy Fun
Director: Todd Phillips
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Rated: R
For: Those looking for raunchy/simple humor
Not for: Anyone looking for a unique or different approach to the Vegas/road trip genre
“It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” As much as it sounds like a line out of A Tale of Two Cities, this actually well refers to everyone’s fond memories of Las Vegas. Nights of debauchery, public drunkenness, casinos, strip clubs, etc. are just a few of the typical stereotypes people associate with sin city. Films have always used Vegas as a backdrop for many different activities from complicated casino heists to blown up babies and much more. The Hangover is a comedy that attempts to give viewers both a laugh and a thought about the joys and pains of partying in the city, yet does it do enough to differentiate itself from other slapstick comedies? In the end, it is going to satisfy those craving a raunchy and visual comedy and will be appreciated for its interesting structure, but while it may surprise with a slew of gags, it won’t quench any other viewer’s appetite for something a bit more different.
The Hangover follows a group of four friends: Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Alan (Zach Galifianakis), and Doug (Justin Bartha). Doug is about to get married in a few days and has decided to party out his remaining single days in Vegas for a bachelor party. They exclaim that the weekend will be one of the best party nights of their lives, being able to get the executive suite and seeing a magnificent view of Vegas from the top of Caesar’s Palace. What starts out as a harmless night, though, becomes catastrophic the next morning. Phil, Stu, and Alan wake up to find their room in shambles and Doug ultimately missing with no one remembering a single clue about the night before. And so starts the race to find Doug and get back to the wedding while trying to put back together memories of the night before.
The comedy itself is pretty funny and interesting in the way it approaches its subject matter. Director Phillips assaults viewers with constant surprises that are used to make the viewer laugh at complete shock of the situation. This rarely lets up as gags are almost always trumped by the next plot point and all smartly relate to Vegas hijinks. To not reveal any relevant narrative not seen in the trailer, one moment pops up a baby in a closet while the next has Mike Tyson jabbing Alan in the face. This is all well complemented by the array of characters included within the story, well focusing on Phil, Stu, and Alan as they look for Doug. All the bases are covered from the crazy lunatic to the straight, middle man and the cool, suave caretaker with Cooper, Helms, and especially Galifianakis all doing competent jobs in carrying out their roles.
Perhaps the most commendable aspect that overlays the entire film is the unique hangover structure. The film begins with the night in Vegas yet skips to the following morning and has the audience feeling much like the characters; hungover and confused as the plot unfolds with the characters piecing back together what happened prior. It is not completely original, done many times before successfully, but seeing it here is a clever addition that helps break up the overdone Vegas gag.
Yet that is the most difficult aspect of The Hangover to get behind as it feels like another retread into the Las Vegas territory with a lot of missteps in between. One aspect that really needed fine-tuning was the editing and pacing. Especially seen at the beginning and the ending where the plot slows down considerably, there are problems with how long scenes are lingered on whether it is driving to Vegas or exposition-laden scenes. Viewers understand that a drive to Vegas from California is long and that there are many, towering buildings able to be seen. Not only has it been done before, it bores the viewers and although may create a contrast between the exciting middle section, is no excuse for simply poor plot progression and not even counting some unnecessary repetitive flashback moments of scenes already seen. Secondly, although it pertains to the central plot point, Bartha is sorely missed for much of the film as the charismatic middleman. It would have been great and interesting to see relevant flashback moments including him rather than have him completely disappear for the majority of the film.
But the most disappointing feature that veteran comedy fans will discover is that the gags are either of the ‘been there, done that’ variety or non-consistent with the rest of the plot. Of the former variety, for a comedy concerning Vegas troubles, it is difficult to always come up with something completely original and in The Hangover, there are a couple scenes that really simply go through the normal stereotypes whether it is the Asian gangster or the prostitute in the quick-fix wedding chapels. Worse off, though, are that the gags rarely have much staying power apart from their surprise, initial effect. One minute may have Alan carrying a baby when after a couple scenes pass, the baby mysteriously disappears without much word from the characters. In another scene, a character is mauled by an animal and is never really referred to again. The scenes may be funny when they first appear yet apart from that, the comedy never really transcends that initial outburst. In the few instances that the comedy tries to inject more character development and purpose, it does come off as a bit ham-fisted and unreal, further giving the film a weird imbalance.
The Hangover is a comedy that goes through a lot of the same Vegas, vulgar slapstick humor that adds some unique twists through its structure. Making the audience feel like the characters by piecing together the plot backwards creates some smart, hilarious situations and the pacing barely lets up in surprising the audience with something more profane or disastrous for the four ‘heroes.’ Yet, The Hangover tries to go for some character development and meaning when it obviously is not necessary and works against the film’s over-the-top plot points, and ultimately, falls under the same trappings of making fun of the same stereotypes. It also feels a lot like one skit after the next, never really addressing or connecting situations completely together. It’s neither for the light of heart or the viewer looking for the next smart comedy, but for those wanting a foul-mouthed, dirty, and somewhat interestingly structured antics of Vegas, The Hangover will at least leave viewers with their mouths in shock and schoolboy giggles galore.
The Wie muses: ** ½ out of *****
Ratings:
*****: Excellent
**** to ****½: Great
*** to ***½: Good
** to **½: Mediocre
* to *½: Bad
0 to ½: Terrible
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Saw it in the theater lol. All I can say about the slideshow in the credits is “wow.”