Long Live This Bromance!

Rating: 10/10 (20 July 2009)

As a long standing admirer of movies and acting, I do enjoy my comedies (as the doctors say, laughter is the best medicine!) Sure, the face of comedy has changed from the sophisticated seventies of Annie Hall, but that isn't a bad thing eitherwhich brings me to the Bro-com or Bromance as I prefer. We've seen its early stages from Road Trip, Old School, Anchorman, The 40-Year-Old Virgin and blooming into gems such as Role Models, I Love You, Man & now the classic Hangover! (God, I still can't stop laughing as I'm writing this)And before you ask, I have seen this film 6 times already and aim to watch it even more upon its DVD release sometime in October (lucky guess I think).
From the posts I've read on this thread, I would agree with some opinions, such as the fact that The Hangover is Sex and the City for men – but funny. It proves again that when a bunch of guys get together (as wonderfully illustrated in this film) that they're not leering at women from afar in Benny Hill fashion; but paying them cheeky compliments along the way: "Excuse me Ma'am, in the leopard dress, you have an amazing rack!" says Bradley Cooper's Phil Wenneck on a megaphone. I won't recap the scenario for you, as I am sure 95% of the USA has seen this already! Oh, and don't get me started on dweebs who say that the tiger in the backseat is unreal – IT'S A COMEDY for crying out loud! It's the same with Stu Price confronting the tiger in the bathroom and screaming like a girl when giving him his raw meat. The laughter would've been lost if he simply threw the morsel at the animal.
Why I embrace the Bromance so much is that it outlines women's faults as much as ours. In I Love You, Man Rashida Jones's Zoe thinks it's fine for her to gossip with girlfriends about her sex life with Peter Klaven (Paul Rudd) but he can't behave in the same manner with his male pals. The same goes for Ed Helms's (Stu Price) and the fact that his Antichrist girlfriend won't let him have a lads weekend away; but it's okay for her to sleep with a bartender! It also illustrates America's constant homophobia issues and luckily, it's acceptable for straight men to declare their brotherly love without worrying about waking up in bed together! What grates on my nerves are people who express their disapproval about so-called gay bashing in this and other movies such as The 40-Year-Old Virgin. This is comedy after all and you cannot be politically correct to please your demographic audience, that's just plain silly. Lines such as: "Paging Doctor Faggot!" are simply hilarious, because it's mocking that character's stupidity, not making fun of homosexuals. If you're gay and want to be offended, go and watch Bruno with Sacha Baron Cohen or Beerfest where they do nothing but reinforce the stereotype. If people start to nitpick about the flack racial/religious/sexual groups receive from comedies, then what will you eventually make fun of? I am actually mixed-race myself and have never taken offence to a classic comedy where the majority of the players are white. In fact, I welcome these movies than drivel such as Pooty Tang & A Thin Line Between Love & Hate (4.7/10 on IMDb's start rating?). Oh, and Bad Boys – unfunny, shouting and self indulgent.
What makes The Hangover an instant classic is the casting & chemistry with all the leads (and Todd Phillips's hilarious cameo). Bradley Cooper, whose character of Zachary "Sack" Lodge in Wedding Crashers was such a douche-bag, but played the part to perfectionin other words, he was unforgettable. I was surprised at his casting initially, but the man can play comedy very well and gets a few good laughs, as I have mentioned already. He seems like a stand-up guy in real life and look forward to seeing more of the Coopster in the future! Ed Helms is also phenomenal in his role as Stu – and quite sympathetic at times as well. Don't know much about him but believe me, I am a convert now and will be watching The Office as soon as possible. Great comic timing and delivery doesn't hurt your appeal, does it? Zach Galifianakis: I used to watch him in Tru Calling but had no idea he was so funny! Yes, he's out of shape but that makes him more believable and his deadpan humour gives this movie some of its funniest moments – including the threat of not being afraid to beat-up an old man at the gas station or "the side effects of Roofies is memory loss, remember?" or the side-splittingly hilarious "I didn't know they gave out rings in the Holocaust?" Justin Bartha as (white) Doug: He didn't have a lot to do in this film, but as a testimony to visual comedy, his red face in the end is something else – and pretty sure his on screen bride-to-be couldn't keep a straight face either! The thing I love about this comedy is that unlike Sex and the City, these guys have ordinary professions (except for Alan & Doug, whom we don't find anything about) -which makes it easier as an audience to bond with and best of all, is the shared dynamic they all have. Also, the fact that you miss comedic moments the first time, means you'll savour them on repeated viewing. A great chemistry and a comedy that doesn't apologise when it comes down to using a baby for a jack-off joke! Let's hope Hangover 2 is as good as or surpasses this milestone classic. Todd Phillips, we salute you! PS: Ken Jeongwhat a legend and a great sport for understanding the values of being in a R-rated comedy. His "So long gay boys" line will forever be on my cellphone when the DVD is released!