Only Half As Good As "The Hangover"

Rating: 5/10 (6 June 2011)

Clearly, "Old School" director Todd Phillips subscribes to the saying if something ain't broke, don't fix it. "The Hangover Part II" reassembles all the fellows but few of the gals from its genuinely hilarious predecessor about the antics of an outlandish Las Vegas bachelor party gone awry. If you thought "The Hangover" was rude, crude, and morally offensive, "Hangover Part 2" makes the 2009 film appear tame by comparison. Not since "The Crying Game" (1992) has a film sunk to the comic excesses that "The Hangover Part II" dares. Sadly, some of the best things about the blockbuster original do not recur in the predictable, but raunchy, R-rated sequel. Basically, "The Hangover Part II" qualifies as only half as funny as the first film. What Phillips could not replicate in terms of riotous wit, he has replaced with shocking revelations. Prepare yourself for something you may have never seen. Undoubtedly, one of the reasons that Phillips set the sequel in the exotic orient was to take advantage of a far more liberal climate concerning sexual identity that is about as perverted as anything that modern, mainstream Americans can imagine.
Were it not for the gifted ensemble cast, including Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha, and Ken Jeong, the half of "Hangover 2" that is hilarious wouldn't be as memorable. Galifianakis takes the smallest things and makes them side-splitting. For example, every time he says Thailand, he says 'thigh-land' rather than 'tie-land.' Galifianakis and Jeong compete to see who can get the biggest laughs. Mind you, "The Hangover 2" is not without its share of surprises. Some surprises are amusing, while others add nothing but complications to a contrived plot. Comparably, Phillips makes Thailand appear far more unsavory than Las Vegas could ever hope even with its shady criminal heritage. Depending on your perspective, "Hangover 2" makes Bangkok look like either the most sizzling place you could set your sights on or the last place this side of Hell that you would visit. Indeed, one of the revelations about a character who vanishes turns out to be less sinister than you might expect given the reputation of this 'anything goes' Southeast Asia country.
Two years after their shenanigans in Las Vegas, Stu (Ed Helms of "Evan Almighty") is scheduled to marry Asian dish Lauren (Jamie Chung of "Sucker Punch") in her homeland on the other side of the world at a picturesque sea-side resort. Initially, Stu has agreed to invite only Phil (Bradley Cooper of "Limitless") and Doug (Justin Bartha of "Failure to Launch") with no thought about moronic Alan. The bachelor brunch that Stu has in mind, however, takes place stateside at an I-HOP before he hops onto a jet. Eventually, an irate Phil prods Stu into throwing a bachelor bash in Thailand. Nevertheless, Stu doesn't want to relive the wolf pack antics of their previous escapade. Just as they are about to leave for the exotic Orient, Doug convinces a reluctant Phil to invite mischievous but well-meaning man-child Alan (Zach Galifianakis of "Due Date") on the condition that Alan doesn't spike their libations with roofies. Things get off to an uneasy start in Thailand for poor Stu because his future father-in-law, Lauren's stern patriarch, Fohn (Nirut Sirijanya of "Ong Bak 3"), roasts him at the wedding rehearsal party. Fohn thoroughly loathes the milquetoast dentist. Indeed, Fohn compares Stu to lukewarm rice. Meanwhile, Fohn lavishes praise and attention on his quiet, 16-year-old Stanford freshman son (Mason Lee of "The Wedding Banquet") majoring in pre-med who plays the cello like a master.
After the party, Phil, Stu, Doug, and Teddy gather on the beach for a benign party around a bonfire with beer and marshmallows. No sooner is all that said and done than they awaken the following morning in the seediest motel Bangkok. They are surprised to learn their old Las Vegas gangster nemesis, Leslie Chow (Ken Jeong of "Role Models"), has spent the night partying with them. As it turns, Doug wisely left the party before everybody headed into Bangkok. After the guys wake up, Chow suddenly keels over face-down into a plate-glass table from snorting too much cocaine. Worse, the only thing left of Teddy is his severed finger with a Stanford ring. This time around Alan is shocked that his head has been shaved, and Stu freaks out over a tattoo on the left temple that resembles the one Mike Tyson sported in "The Hangover." First, the wolf pack disposes of Chow's body. Wrapping it in towels, they stash it in an ice-making machine. Afterward, they retrace their steps so they can learn what happened to Teddy. The fellows find out that they burned down a bar, cavorted with some questionable gals, and ran afoul of some trigger-happy thugs. Along the way, they encounter another equally dangerous gangster, Kingsley (Paul Giamatti of "Sideways"), who not only has a million dollar deal with Mr. Chow, but also knows about Teddy's whereabouts. Our baffled heroes also find out that the electricity in Bangkok has a way of going out when they least expect it.
Phillips and freshman scribes Craig Mazin and Scot Armstrong spend the first formulaic thirty minutes getting the wolf pack back together before they fly them off to Bangkok. Like the first movie, "The Hangover Part 2" opens with Phil making his inevitable phone call to warn the wedding party that they have encountered some slight difficulties. The filmmakers replace Mike Tyson's roaring tiger with a drug-dealing, cigarette-smoking capuchin monkey in a Rolling Stones' outfit. Phillips orchestrates a roller-coaster chase through Bangkok that looks like something out of "Smoky and the Bandit." Ultimately, Stu solves a mystery about himself that will either embarrass you with its tawdry tastelessness or having you laugh so hard that you'll burst a blood vessel. Altogether, "The Hangover Part 2" is unforgettable in the worst and best ways, but it never crackles with the spontaneity that made "The Hangover" so insanely entertaining.