Movie Review : The Hangover : Part ll
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| The Hangover Part 2 |
If “The Hangover: Part II” filmmakers studied the success of bacon, or even sausage, they might have found the missing link between comedy and crotch shots: moderation.
Americans love bacon – inside omelets, nestled between lettuce and tomato, atop cheeseburgers and driving cop cars. It’s a complementary item, a scrumptious second stage staple, a subtle tribute to our meat-eating caveman pedigree.
But “The Hangover” sequel comes at us like a big ole side of pork – cured, fried, sliced into strips and piled high into a crispy, greasy mess. The innocence – I say that relatively – of the predecessor is lost among the sequel’s full-frontal onslaught of micropenisia (an actual medical condition) and overexposed Bangkok lady boy shots that linger in front of the lens way too long.
Director Todd Phillips & Co. take the Costco approach to their sequel: more is better. And much the same way that at least a couple dozen ounces of blue cheese in that plastic industrial drum will spoil before you can eat 1,000 wings, the gunshot wounds, blow snorts and Mike Tyson tattoos ultimately go to waste in “Hangover 2.”
I don’t think I need to offer up a 30-second summary of a movie that grossed over $30 million on opening day, but here it is. The wolf pack – fratty Phil (Bradley Cooper), emasculated Stu (Ed Helms) and enigmatic Alan (Zach Galifianakis) meet up again for Phil’s nuptials in Thailand. They pledge no craziness, no bachelor party. They had their fill after their drug-fueled, sex-crazed black out in Vegas two years ago. But of course, stuff happens.
Sooner than later, they’re peeling themselves off a cheap Bangkok flophouse floor minus several companions and plus one monkey. Gags, chases, phone calls, nervous shots of the waiting bride to be all ensue – all recreated to match the original. “The Hangover: Part II” isn’t so much a sequel as it is a translation – a translation for those who prefer to drink up their humor garnished with a groin kick and a mid-coitis choke instead of a wink and a nod. Bottoms up.
All of this doesn’t matter. If you don’t see this movie at the theater, you’ll see it at home; it is a decent hangover movie. And no matter what we say, “The Hangover: Part II” will bring home the bacon.
“The Hangover: Part II,” checking in at 101 minutes and rated R, is now playing nationwide. Mike gives the movie 2 out of 4 stars.
But “The Hangover” sequel comes at us like a big ole side of pork – cured, fried, sliced into strips and piled high into a crispy, greasy mess. The innocence – I say that relatively – of the predecessor is lost among the sequel’s full-frontal onslaught of micropenisia (an actual medical condition) and overexposed Bangkok lady boy shots that linger in front of the lens way too long.
Director Todd Phillips & Co. take the Costco approach to their sequel: more is better. And much the same way that at least a couple dozen ounces of blue cheese in that plastic industrial drum will spoil before you can eat 1,000 wings, the gunshot wounds, blow snorts and Mike Tyson tattoos ultimately go to waste in “Hangover 2.”
I don’t think I need to offer up a 30-second summary of a movie that grossed over $30 million on opening day, but here it is. The wolf pack – fratty Phil (Bradley Cooper), emasculated Stu (Ed Helms) and enigmatic Alan (Zach Galifianakis) meet up again for Phil’s nuptials in Thailand. They pledge no craziness, no bachelor party. They had their fill after their drug-fueled, sex-crazed black out in Vegas two years ago. But of course, stuff happens.
Sooner than later, they’re peeling themselves off a cheap Bangkok flophouse floor minus several companions and plus one monkey. Gags, chases, phone calls, nervous shots of the waiting bride to be all ensue – all recreated to match the original. “The Hangover: Part II” isn’t so much a sequel as it is a translation – a translation for those who prefer to drink up their humor garnished with a groin kick and a mid-coitis choke instead of a wink and a nod. Bottoms up.
All of this doesn’t matter. If you don’t see this movie at the theater, you’ll see it at home; it is a decent hangover movie. And no matter what we say, “The Hangover: Part II” will bring home the bacon.
“The Hangover: Part II,” checking in at 101 minutes and rated R, is now playing nationwide. Mike gives the movie 2 out of 4 stars.
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