Hilarious

Rating: 9/10 (22 March 2010)

After Todd Phillips rather disappointing debut in this genre of low-brow comedy, 2003's 'Old School' not many people would be expecting a lot from 'The Hangover'. How refreshing therefore that despite taking a tried and tested formula, 'The Hangover' manages to be consistently funny and emerges as a strong contender for the funniest film of the last few years.
Focusing upon husband to be Doug (Justin Bartha) the film begins with his three best friends; Stu (Ed Helms), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and Phil (Bradley Cooper)waking up in Vegas the morning after their friends stag night, only to find there mate has gone missing. What adds particular kudos to Phillip's film is that unlike most films in this genre we are spared the pre-amble of the drunken night itself and instead have no further clue than the characters themselves, only piecing together the previous nights evidence as we go along. Finding a baby in the closet of there hotel room, Mike Tyson's tiger in the bathroom and one of the main characters missing a front tooth are just some of the bizarre clues we are given at the beginning.
Another problem with most films in this genre is you see the sixty second trailer, laugh hysterically, only to go and watch the film to find all the funny bits were within the trailer. Not so with 'The Hangover', with the laughs coming thick and fast; from Mike Tyson's cameo to the guys finding a naked Asian man in the trunk of there car, the film really does have it all! If I had to pick one thing that I think makes the film the success it is however, it would be the chemistry between the main leads. You really do care about the situations they find themselves in and that the ending is a happy one. You have Phil the alpha-male, Stu the neurotic nerd who gets everything wrong and the hilariously weird, bearded Alan. It is arguably Galifianakis role as him that his the star role, watch out for the hysterical moment when Mike Tyson knocks him out singing along to Phil Collins. In conclusion this film is hilarious and also features one of the best credit sequences ever when the guys find a camera after Doug's wedding that explains everything unanswered up to that point.