Film Review: "The Hangover" A Must See, Game-changing Film

By Monica Peters

Trust me, this is not your typical bachelor film. You will not want to make a dash for popcorn or take a bathroom break. "The Hangover," starring Justin Bartha, Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis may go down in history as one of the greatest bachelor films of all time. It is outrageous, over-the-top and hilarious taking a cliché topic and elevating it to the next level. The film is a game changer in how bachelor stories and scripts will be approached in Hollywood. What makes this film spectacular is that the story line is intriguing and cleverly written. The plot of the film is incorporated into the film’s credits at the end. The humor has no boundaries and leaves no stone unturned in the comedy department. The whacky, funny characters along the way like the “Asian gangster” give it a twist.

The film about four friends’ crazy bachelor party in Las Vegas, is a new millennium male version of male bonding meets Waiting to Exhale that goes seriously wrong. They have waken up to a trashed hotel room with a rooster wandering around, an unidentified infant baby that was left in the room, a tiger in the bathroom, one of the friends (a dentist) now has a missing front tooth, to make matters worse their friend, Doug, who is the groom-to-be is missing. The film focuses on them searching for their friend, and more importantly investigating why all four of them can not remember anything about the bachelor party. However, they must get this all resolved and get to Los Angeles in time for Doug’s wedding.

Their wild goose chase leads the friends to being placed in a some hilarious situations such as being used for a police taser gun presentation at an elementary school, allowing the students to use them as practice targets-- in exchange for them not going to jail for stealing a cop car. One even discovers that he got married to a stranger in Vegas. Boxer Mike Tyson adds some humor to the film although he is only featured briefly.

Although this film will leave your stomach in pain from laughing so hard, it hits a serious topic after one of the friends reveals why none of them can not remember what happened at the bachelor party (although it is addressed humorously). I will not discuss what that serious topic is because I do not want to give away the film. Parents, this film is not for kids due to the nudity and over-the-top content, but you should definitely have a talk with them after seeing this movie. Other than that, get your “laugh on.” The Hangover will not leave movie goers disappointed. The Hangover hits theaters on Friday June 5.