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'The Hangover' you won't want to cure
The Hangover (now showing at the Breeze Cinema 8) is, in essence, a creative twist on the "one crazy night" and "road trip" comedy templates. It's not necessary to go into much detail as far as the plot is concerned; all you need to know is that a groom and his three groomsmen head out for a night of debauchery, and then wake up in the morning to find that their hotel room has been completely trashed and the groom has vanished. They have no recollection of what happened the night before, but as they try to retrace their steps, things get more and more out of hand. One of the movie's greatest strengths is the way in which the story is told; the audience is kept in suspense as the mystery unravels essentially in real-time. The shared state of confusion between the audience and the characters only serves to heighten the hilarity. There aren't too many comedies that use this little narrative trick, but it works wonders here. While it could limit the film's replay value if the humour was too heavily dependent on shocks and surprises, this is not the only thing the movie has going for it. The chemistry between the cast is top notch, and much like the show Entourage, it isn't about brilliant jokes and punchlines so much as it is about that feeling of camaraderie and trash talking among close friends who are stuck in a tense predicament. The script alone isn't extraordinary (it's written by the same guys who did Four Christmases, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, and Rebound starring Martin Lawrence), but when combined with the incredulous reactions of the actors and what appear to be some improvised bits, it all becomes that much more infectious. The movie has a great sense of pacing for the most part, and manages to keep upping the ante and increasing the energy level along the way. Although there isn't any one actor whose individual performance makes the movie, it could be perceived that Zach Galifianakis kind of steals the show. Ed Helms is the responsible square of the group, and Bradley Cooper is the straight man with a frat boy sensibility, but Galifianakis is the wild card. His character is introduced as an outsider to the group, being the brother of the bride, so no one quite knows what to expect from him. Viewers unfamiliar with Galifianakis may anticipate a stereotypical obnoxious fat guy act, but he turns this idea completely on its head with his strange demeanor, soft-spoken delivery and weird, sensitive moments. There's no question that this is going to be a breakout role for him. The movie is even pretty visually impressive for a summer comedy; Todd Phillips (Old School, Starsky and Hutch) knows how to take things to the next level, and cinematographer Lawrence Sher previously shot such indie films as Garden State and The Promotion. The gambling sequence that parodies movies like 21 and Rain Man are particularly enjoyable. The bottom line is that The Hangover is a great movie to watch with a crowd, and by the time it reaches the soon-to-belegendary end credits, there's a strong chance you and everyone around you will be rolling in the aisles. How they managed to maintain an R-rating here is beyond me, but it is such a brilliant way to cap off the film that it seems only appropriate. (Review taken from www.filmjunk.com.) |
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