The Hangover

The first installment of what would ultimately become a trilogy, it’s fair to say The Hangover was a hugely popular film. Directed by Todd Phillips, this American comedy sees a group of friends travel to Las Vegas, for one last blow-out before their friend gets married. A significant global box office success, the film centres around the friendship of the main characters, with the banter between them providing ample source for comedic effect.

The twists and turns of the story, too, make this a fun, fast-paced film that’s firmly in the light entertainment category. The Vegas backdrop only lends additional magic to the story, as well as providing a convenient background for the assorted antics of the crew, as they try to piece together and subsequently clear up the mess that was the night before.

The film is incredibly based on a true story, at least to some extent. A friend of the film’s writers himself blacked out in Vegas, and woke up in a strip club with a demand to pay a significant bill, and no memory of the night before.

The situational comedy that ensues means this is around 100 minutes of fun, enjoyable viewing. If you haven’t seen it before, here’s a brief overview of how the action goes down.

Plot

With just a couple of days to go before his wedding, Doug and his three friends set off to Las Vegas for the stag do of a lifetime. The party unfolds, and true to form, they all have a great time – or at least, they think they do. The next morning, they wake up, sans Doug who has apparently gone missing. To add to the confusion, none of them can remember what went on the night before, and gradually, they start to uncover some of the bad things they may have got up to while under the influence.

Time is clearly of the essence for the bridesmen, who must find Doug, as well as put right the wrongs of their big night, in time for the wedding. As they begin to retrace their steps from the previous day, they are drawn through various different circumstances and twists, which start to piece together the picture of what went on that night.

Without giving too much away, there are some hilarious events that come flooding back, including some involving Mike Tyson, a tiger, a baby, and several other things they all seem to have forgotten in their drunken haze. Can they pull it together in time, and find Doug ahead of the wedding, in spite of their hangovers? You’ll have to watch it to find out.

Who Will Enjoy This Film

The Hangover received a generally warm reception from film critics and audiences alike, with most appreciating the humour and comedy, even if the concept isn’t the most original. We’ve all seen Vegas films before, and the concept of a group of guys getting drunk and living to regret it the next day, to comic effect, is far from a new one,especially when getting chased by mobsters.

Most of the criticisms of the film, where rarely applicable, focused on the lack of depth to the characters, or the somewhat cliched elements of the plot and main characters. But given this is supposed to be a light-hearted, entertaining comedy, it’s probably a little too much to expect this to be some great cinematic work.

The Hangover is what it is, and few would watch it and think the film wasn’t funny or at the very least entertaining. The results speak for themselves, and with some 465.0 million in box office receipts, few could credibly doubt its popularity. If you like comedy films, or you’ve ever had one of those nights yourself, you’ll definitely see the appeal in this, and the subsequent installments, in The Hangover trilogy. If you haven’t seen it yet, The Hangover comes highly recommend – it’s a virtual guarantee you’ll have a laugh at the very least.