Sidewalks On The Corner

"The Hangover" is a hilarious romp through the city of sin. Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and Doug (Justin Bartha) set out to Vegas for the bachelor party of their lives. When they wake up the next morning, however, things become a total mystery about the night before. Oh, yeah...and the groom-to-be Doug is missing. Retracing their steps, the three remaining friends go on a hunt for clues leading up to Doug's disappearance.

Follow up:

THE HANGOVER
Warner Bros. Pictures/Legendary Pictures
Opening Date: Friday, June 5, 2009 (Wide)
MPAA Rating: R for pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, and some drug material.
Run Time: 105 minutes
URL: www.HangoverMovie.com
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Heather Graham, Justin Bartha, Jeffrey Tambor
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Writer: Jon Lucas & Scott Moore
Produced by: Todd Phillips and Dan Goldberg
Executive Produced by: Chris Bender, J.C. Spink, Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni, William Fay and Scott Budnick

Studio Synopsis:
From the director of “Old School” comes a new comedy about a bachelor party gone horribly wrong.

Two days before his wedding, Doug (Justin Bartha) and his three buddies (Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis) drive to Las Vegas for a blow-out night they’ll never forget. But when the three groomsmen wake up the next morning with pounding headaches, they can't remember a thing. Their posh hotel suite is beyond trashed and the groom is nowhere to be found. With no clue about what happened and little time to spare, the trio must attempt to retrace their bad decisions from the night before in order to figure out where things went wrong and hopefully get Doug back to L.A. in time for his wedding. However, the more they begin to uncover, the more they realize just how much trouble they’re really in.

Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Legendary Pictures, a Green Hat Films Production of a Todd Phillips Movie: “The Hangover,” a comedy directed by Todd Phillips (“Old School,” “Starsky & Hutch”), from a screenplay by Jon Lucas & Scott Moore. Todd Phillips and Dan Goldberg produce, with executive producers Chris Bender, J.C. Spink, Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni, William Fay and Scott Budnick. The film stars starring Bradley Cooper (“He’s Just Not That Into You,” “Yes Man”), Ed Helms (TV’s “The Office,” “Semi-Pro”), Zach Galifianakis (“What Happens in Vegas,” “Into the Wild”), Heather Graham (“Bobby,” “Boogie Nights”), Justin Bartha (the “National Treasure” films, “Failure to Launch”) and Jeffrey Tambor (“Hellboy II,” TV’s “Arrested Development”). The filmmaking team includes director of photography Lawrence Sher, production designer Bill Brzeski, and editor Debra Neil-Fisher. Music is by Christophe Beck.

(L-r) Stu (ED HELMS), Alan (ZACH GALIFIANAKIS), MIKE TYSON and Phil (BRADLEY COOPER) watch the security surveillance footage from the night before in Warner Bros. Pictures' and Legendary Pictures' comedy "The Hangover," a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo by Frank Masi.

What I Liked:
I can say that I got taken for a ride and loved nearly every moment of it. Usually films that have a "guys’ night out" theme turn out to be a carnival of raunchiness. You know the type of male chauvinist movies filled with drunkenness and strip joints. Not necessarily the case with this movie.

The story feels fresh, as the whole experience was an adventure to solve a pretty wild, outrageous mystery. How outrageous you ask? What about finding a baby in the closet, a tiger in the bathroom, and a missing tooth -- YEAH....crazy!

What makes "The Hangover" so funny is watching those events unfold in the form of clues. Some of the funnier moments stem from the scenes with either Stu or Alan involved. One particular funny scene is at a Vegas wedding chapel, where Stu finds out he's married to a stripper/escort (played by Heather Graham). They are confronted by an Asian gang. The two gang members attack them while they are trying to get away and Stu starts freaking out, screaming at the top of his lungs.

Other funny scenes come from Alan's comedy routine. Just the simple fact that Alan is a simpleton is so funny. The brainless phrases that come spewing out of his mouth at times of trouble are hilarious. When the guys ask where the baby came from, Alan spurts out "I don't know check its collar of something."

Finding the leader of Asian gang in their truck was also hilarious.

Another really funny moment was the end credits, where photos of the events in question where exposed. As the film came to an end, the three stooges figured out what went down, the look of surprise and shock on their faces is the true punchline.

I heard of people doing some pretty crazy things while drunk, so I can believe in the story enough to say hey it could happen. Nice pay off.

The casting department did a great in assembling the players.

I felt comedian Galifianakis almost stole the show as Alan, with stupid off-the-cuff phrases. As I mentioned above, the things that came out of his mouth was comedy gold. Another highlight was Helms as Stu, who was Galifianakis’ right hand man in the stupid department. The only real voice of reason out of the whole group was Phil, where Cooper’s character was almost like the big brother figure. Instead of freaking out about the whole situation, he at least was trying to find an explanation for every thing. Although he was only in the first 15-20 minutes of the film, I felt Bartha’s character of Doug, the groom, was barely a supporting cast member. Yet somehow, he was the highlight of the film because he was missing.

What I Didn't Like:
The ending felt a little flimsy, meaning it was too simple. Out of all the trouble they went through to find Doug they could have came up with an even funnier excuse as to why he ended up missing in the first place.

On a topic of a trailer giving too much away, Sidewalks’ executive producer Richard R. Lee, who I saw the film with, and I felt the use of one-time boxing champ Mike Tyson was spoiled when you saw the actual film. They showed his best scene and “his singing voice” of a popular Phil Collins’ tune in the trailer. It would have been a bigger surprise if you didn’t know Tyson was in the film. Oh well, I guess the use of Tyson in the trailer would help get people out of their homes and into the seats. Surprisingly, other than that, there wasn't much to complain about “The Hangover.”

J.P.'s Final Thoughts:
"The Hangover" is a trippy, fun new aged, guys’ night out film that is non stop funny. The story sounds more shocking than the actual deeds that were exposed. That made for some nice twists in the plot. I had fun with it and wouldn't mind seeing it again.

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J.P. Langston is a member of "Sidewalks Entertainment" team primarily as a videographer. He loves movies, especially sci-fi horror and action comedies. Some of his favorite films include "Blade Runner" "The Matrix Trilogy," The (original) "Star Wars," "Equilibrium," "Serenity," "Kill Bill Vols 1 and 2," "Appleseed," "Unbreakable" and "Sin City." He has a large DVD collection, which is still growing. Since reviewing films for "Sidewalks," he has been expanding his palette for all types of films.