Was the first installment of The Hangover the best comedy of all-time? Probably not, but some people seem to think so, especially those who judge a movie by its box-office earnings. Now the pressure is on with The Hangover Part II, which doesn’t have the surprise factor the first one had. If you’ve seen the first one, you know what this one is about.
The only difference is that they are in Bangkok for Ed Helms’ character’s wedding and his bride’s younger brother is the one who has gone missing. For those who haven’t seen the first one, the story follows a group of friends who try to piece together their previous night after blacking out and waking up with one of their numbers missing. As things develop, it turns out each event was more ridiculous than the last. It’s like a drunkard’s Sherlock Holmes.
Since the three primary leads are now big stars, the expectation of their performances has to be raised. Bradley Cooper fulfills this requirement to an extent that it’s clear he is too big of a star for an ensemble comedy like this. Since Helms’ wedding is the event in focus for this film, his performance contains a lot of screaming and his usual charm is hardly there. As for Zach Galifianakis, the line is so completely blurred between his acting and the character’s awkwardness I can’t tell if he has a great performance or a terrible one. As a group there just isn’t the chemistry there was in the original, possibly because the person they’re searching for isn’t one of their oldest friends, like last time.
Fans of raunchy comedy will most definitely be in hysterics during The Hangover Part II. Some of the events are incredibly disgusting, others just really funny. As is the case with any sequel, it has to answer to comparisons with the original. The verdict isn’t a clear one. The plots are completely parallel with many similar events. But it is fairly well done and funny. (8.0 out of 10)
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