A Comedy We All Desperately Needed

Rating: 10/10 (11 June 2009)

In rough times like these, we need a good comedy to make us laugh and put a smile on our faces. The Hangover is that movie. Its a raunchy rowdy crazy good time, featuring everything from retro Mercedes to Mike Tyson. So far, it's easily the best film I've seen all year.
The story revolves around a trip to Las Vegas gone wrong, which sometimes works (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) and sometimes dosen't (What Happens In Vegas). Two best friends, the cool schoolteacher Phil (Bradley Cooper) and the nerdy dentist Stu (Ed Helms), along with the bride's brother Alan (Zach Galifianakis) wake up in their room in Caesar's Palace, with no recollection of what happened the night before, which they spent having a wild bachelor party for their friend Doug (Justin Bartha). Turns out, there's a tiger in the bathroom, a baby in the closet, Stu's missing a tooth,and (for reasons unexplained) there's a chicken in the kitchen. And, oh yeah, Doug's nowhere to be found. The three race around Sin City searching for the groom, where more crazy stuff starts happening. When the valet brings their car, it's a police car. Stu is married to a stripper (Heather Graham, beautiful as ever). They apparently had a run in with a mean gangster (Ken Jeong). They went to Mike Tyson's house. The list goes on and on, each misadventure produces more hilarity than the last.
The cast is pretty much a poor man's Judd Apatow, without the cheap love story sandwiched in (yes, Knocked Up and The 40 Year Old Virgin were classics, but turned slowly into chick flick territory). Most of the guys you know you have seen, but just can't put a name to a face. Helms, best known as Rainn Wilson's rival on The Office, plays the role of Stu perfectly. He plays the delusional Stu with great humor, especially when he goes crazy on the others. As the closest thing to a lead, Cooper is the laid back guy who tries to keep everyone under control. Hopefully more lead roles are headed his way. Galifianakis plays the annoying Alan with perfect poise, that when he when he dosen't fret over the tiger when he first sees it, you just have to wonder why no one discovered him until now. Bartha's screen time is reduced, due to the fact he's missing for half the film, but he does his job well and manages to crack some good ones before he goes missing. There are some enjoyable cameos by Mike Epps, Tyson, and Jeffrey Tambor that will keep you laughing as well.
Overall, The Hangover is one of the funniest films I've ever seen, and, as I said earlier, the best I've seen all year. A sequel is already being written, but I'm not sure if I want it. But knowing these guys, if they could make a comedy about anything, I'd probably watch it.