The Hangover 2 – Movie Review

Stu, Alan and Phil are back for another installment of The Hangover. This time in Bangkok

You can read more of Matt’s movie reviews over at his Flick Focus Blog

Right – you know the drill. Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms) and Alan (Zack Galifianakis) come to in a trashed hotel room (“it happened again!”), inexplicably wasted and unable to remember the night before (sound familiar?). This time, the wolfpack are in Thailand for Stu’s wedding, and the gang have managed to misplace his fiancée’s 16 year old brother somewhere in the streets of Bangkok.

Business as usual then.

At first the film is light on laughs, so it’s a relief that at this point the jokes finally start coming thick and fast. From the welcome return of hilariously offensive gangster Chow (Jeon) to a beating at the hands of some meditating monks, the film never lets up for a second. Nothing is off-limits – there’s death, dicks, dismemberment and a somewhat darker take on the original’s wildly successful formula. Whilst I’ll admit its low-brow, gross-out humour isn’t for everyone, Part II is still one of the funniest, laugh-out-loud movies I’ve seen in a long, long time. That said, the number of dangling dongs swinging around on screen was ridiculous. I haven’t seen this many cocks since the time I did a Google image search for Piers Morgan.

Ahem. Cooper and co are on top form (even if Alan has started to come across as a bit of a jerk at times) as they stumble their way from one shocking, humiliating and often downright cringe-worthy disaster to the next. Even the more outlandish characters – Chow, a smoking monkey, a singing cameo (!) – are as mad as ever and far more entertaining than they have any right to be. The success or failure of the movie ultimately hinges on its over-the-top shocks and memorably oddball characters, so it’s a relief to see the sequel deliver on both counts.

in some places the plot is so similar to the first film you could be forgiven for thinking you’re watching The Hangover Part 1.5

Ironically The Hangover Part II’s greatest asset is also its biggest weakness – it’s not so much a loving homage to the original as a near-identical carbon copy of it. There’s nothing wrong with sticking to a winning formula I suppose, as long as it’s still entertaining and, crucially, still funny – (‘if it ain’t broke…’) but Part II is just a little too similar for its own good.

L-R - Phil (Cooper), Alan (Galifianakis) and Stu (Helms)

I suppose the fundamental question is, inevitably, is the sequel better than the original? I’m afraid it’s a case of close, but no cigar – whilst it may be as funny as its forebear, its overly-familiar plot lacks its freshness and originality.

Yes, there is sometimes a sense of déjà vu. Yes, in some places the plot is so similar to the first film you could be forgiven for thinking you’re watching The Hangover Part 1.5. But – most importantly of all – there are also 101 minutes of hilarious, fast-paced fun in one of the year’s best films so far.

Score: 4/5

UK Release Date: 27th May 2011

Director: Todd Phillips

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeon

Certificate: 15

Running time: 101 minutes