Begs the question "Can you call it a comedy if there are no jokes?"

Rating: Null/10 (24 August 2011)

I'll be straight up honest: I didn't like The Hangover. I thought it was over-hyped and really not much to write home about. Back then it got a C- and I recall considering walking out it was so offensive and pointless. All that didn't stop it from raking in almost a half-billion worldwide.
This style of movie is a convergence of the Tina Fey generation of comedy writers and the R-rated comedy run that started probably with Wedding Crashers and has not let up. They are the comedies with no jokes, just funny/gross/offensive/wacky – you name it – as long as you don't have to actually put in the effort of writing a single funny line of dialog.
Here we go on Part 2. In a particularly good choice, I went to the crack-head cinema. I've yet to see a good movie at this theater and I didn't think anything was going to change. Turns out crack-heads are within the target audience. The place was packed and roared with laughter throughout the entire movie. I was a little island of silence in the middle of a jovial (high) crowd. I managed one "heh" at some Galifianakis line, but it was Part 1 all over again. And I mean that literally – it was the same story in every way, just set in a different city. They wake up after a wild bender, someone's missing, all is well by the end.
The difference that gave The Hangover a C- was a bit of heart, some personal growth, and a little bit of dramatic tension. Phil has to own up to what happened, Stu broke up with his controlling girlfriend to pursue his wife/stripper with a heart of gold. I know you're saying "But this is a comedy, Fat Man! There's no plot needed!!" Sure, if it's complete non-sequitur comedy, but any narrative (comedy or not) need to have some plot structure and a reason to exist. All that development is all thrown out the window in Part 2 where they are all great friends already, Stu has dumped his mistake of the past and they apparently have not learned a single thing about honesty. Bottom line: I don't care how cool a woman is, none of this is instantly okay. With some time, maybe. Right away? Absolutely not. The characters reverted to their selfish lying selves that we saw at the beginning of Part 1. Also, extreme irresponsibility, last I checked, does not increase the respect of someone who has no respect for you to begin with. You know, just in case you were planning something wild to impress your boss and get that big raise.
The Hangover Part II is just another R-rated comedy that begs the question "Can you call it a comedy if there are no jokes?"