MOVIE OF THE WEEK #1 (5/23/13) THE HANGOVER PART III
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, John Goodman, Mike Epps, Justin Bartha, Heather Graham and Melissa McCarthy
WRITER(S): Todd Phillips and Chris Mazin (screenplay): Jon Lucas and Scott Moore (characters)
DIRECTOR: Todd Phillips
WEB SITE: http://www.hangoverpart3.com/
60 SECOND PLOT SYNOPSIS: Remember The Hangover? Remember how our buddies – the playboy Phil (Bradley Cooper), the uptight Stu (Ed Helms) and the dim-witted Alan (Zach Galifianakis) – lost their soon-to-be-married friend Doug (Justin Bartha) in a wild Las Vegas adventure? Remember how they then went to Thailand for Stu's wedding to Lauren (Jamie Chung) and had another batch of wacky misadventures?
Well, what do you think is going to happen when the Wolfpack's old buddy Leslie Chow (Dr. Ken Jeong) busts out of a Thai prison, hoping to recover $21 million in gold bars he stole from Marshall (John Goodman) and they have to go back to Vegas to do it? Comedy!
Well, what do you think is going to happen when the Wolfpack's old buddy Leslie Chow (Dr. Ken Jeong) busts out of a Thai prison, hoping to recover $21 million in gold bars he stole from Marshall (John Goodman) and they have to go back to Vegas to do it? Comedy!
WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST: Die-hard Zach Galifianakis fans, people who enjoyed The Hangover Part II, people who enjoyed Due Date & Identity Thief and most network sitcoms
WHO WON'T LIKE THIS FILM: People who didn't find The Hangover Part II that great, people who don't like repeated joke themes, people who don't "get" Galifianakis
WHO WON'T LIKE THIS FILM: People who didn't find The Hangover Part II that great, people who don't like repeated joke themes, people who don't "get" Galifianakis
BOTTOM LINE – IS IT GOOD, GREAT, BAD OR DOWNRIGHT AWFUL? Mediocre. If you didn't really like Part II, you really won't like the finale that much, either.
WHAT'S GOOD (OR BAD) ABOUT IT?: When the first Hangover movie dropped, it was creative, fresh, had shocking humor that felt organic and most importantly, felt fresh. Fast forward to two movie laters and it just feels tired, tedious and repetitive. For if Part Two was the "let's do everything people enjoyed about the first one to an even bigger extreme," Part III is an often failed attempt at "let's have the two characters that were great in small doses carry the load and figure out the details later."
There's a scene earlier on the film where Cooper's character says – and I quote – "What the $#!@ are we watching?!" Unfortunately, that sentiment is also a perfect capsulation of what will go through your mind about 30 minutes into the movie. Part III has funny moments, but everything that made the first film so great – the unpredictability, the shocks, the outrageousness – feels like a foregone conclusion by Part III. It's not that Jeong and Galiafankis aren't funny ... They're just not doing anything funny enough to have you escape the familiar territory feeling that the nearly two hour adventure is.
Put it this way: Part III is like a really good pizza ... After you've warmed it up in the microwave 3 days later and the cheese has congealed a little, the pepperoni isn't as fresh and you can't deny the big grease stains on the bottom of the box as you try to convince yourself it's not that bad for you. And even though Goodman tries to bring some new energy to the occasion channeling an energy not seen since his days as Walter in The Big Lebowski, it still feels as if he is improperly utilized while Jeong and Galifianakis end up becoming one note parodies of their own characters.
Thus, if you're looking for something new, fresh and exciting, you won't find it here. But if you like knowing what you're getting before you head into the theater, The Hangover Part III will be there waiting for you like an old friend ... An old friend with nothing new to talk about except the same ol' thing they did the last time you hung out together.
WHAT'S GOOD (OR BAD) ABOUT IT?: When the first Hangover movie dropped, it was creative, fresh, had shocking humor that felt organic and most importantly, felt fresh. Fast forward to two movie laters and it just feels tired, tedious and repetitive. For if Part Two was the "let's do everything people enjoyed about the first one to an even bigger extreme," Part III is an often failed attempt at "let's have the two characters that were great in small doses carry the load and figure out the details later."
There's a scene earlier on the film where Cooper's character says – and I quote – "What the $#!@ are we watching?!" Unfortunately, that sentiment is also a perfect capsulation of what will go through your mind about 30 minutes into the movie. Part III has funny moments, but everything that made the first film so great – the unpredictability, the shocks, the outrageousness – feels like a foregone conclusion by Part III. It's not that Jeong and Galiafankis aren't funny ... They're just not doing anything funny enough to have you escape the familiar territory feeling that the nearly two hour adventure is.
Put it this way: Part III is like a really good pizza ... After you've warmed it up in the microwave 3 days later and the cheese has congealed a little, the pepperoni isn't as fresh and you can't deny the big grease stains on the bottom of the box as you try to convince yourself it's not that bad for you. And even though Goodman tries to bring some new energy to the occasion channeling an energy not seen since his days as Walter in The Big Lebowski, it still feels as if he is improperly utilized while Jeong and Galifianakis end up becoming one note parodies of their own characters.
Thus, if you're looking for something new, fresh and exciting, you won't find it here. But if you like knowing what you're getting before you head into the theater, The Hangover Part III will be there waiting for you like an old friend ... An old friend with nothing new to talk about except the same ol' thing they did the last time you hung out together.
RATING (OUT OF FOUR BUCKETS OF POPCORN):
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