Saturday, January 14, 2012

The Hangover Part II (2011)

One its own, this would have been a passable comedy. It had equal parts raunch and wit, and could have easily kept audiences happy. But the fact that it's nearly identical to the original makes The Hangover Part II seem exceptionally lazy.

Two years after their experience in Las Vegas, Stu, Phil, Alan and Doug head to Thailand to celebrate Stu's impending nuptials. Almost immediately, the group decides to avoid their Vegas debacle and have a calm bachelor bonfire on the beach the night before the wedding. Cut to the next morning, and it's deja vu for the guys. Phil wakes up still a little smashed, Alan is sporting a new buzzcut, and Stu somehow got a face tattoo mirroring Mike Tyson's. Oh, and there's a monkey. Chaos ensues when the guys realize Stu's fiance's brother is missing in Bangkok. Now, the gang must first figure out what steps they took the night before in order to retrace them. Their misadventures take them to a Buddhist temple, a transsexual strip club and a health clinic. They also had run ins with Russian mobsters and a dangerous crime lord. Twists and turns along the way, of course.

Where to begin. I'll start with the similarities between the two Hangover movies. They're all there. Instead of Doug going missing, it's Stu's fiance's brother. Instead of a tiger, it's a monkey. Instead of the seedy underbelly of Las Vegas, it's the seedy underbelly of the world. Throw in Chow and the supporting cast from the first flick, and there you have it. I'm not sure where the blame lies with getting this movie green lit, but I'm just going to spread it around to all parties involved. Save for some Zach Galifianakis one-liners, this really isn't worth it. Grade: C-

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