Many casual movie reviewers in the blogosphere, or the internet at large, will only go all or nothing on their reviews. It's either two thumbs way up or the worst movie they've ever seen, 5 stars or none at all. I personally think this is a totally bone-headed way of reviewing, and it casts a long shadow over the accuracy of ratings on sites like imdb.com and rottentomatoes.com. The reason I mention all of this is that last night I watched a fine film that has seemingly fallen prey to all-or-nothing raters, The Hangover.
The averages for the ratings of The Hangover are fairly accurate in my opinion, with enough haters giving it no rating at all to balance out all the people who think it's the Citizen Kane of screwball comedies. The general consensus has granted The Hangover between 70% and 80% positive reviews.
First, I'll go through my complaints. This film doesn't really stretch out and do anything new. There's a pretty stereotypical and completely expected storyline here. A handful of excellent gags and some fine comedic deliveries are needed to save what could easily be a dull showing. Another huge problem with this movie is that the marketing campaign for it was so expansive that many of the greatest moments were completely spoiled even before the premiere. I try to avoid watching trailers and ruining films, but with The Hangover it was virtually impossible to accomplish. What could have been some incredible laughs were spoiled by having seen complete scenes in the tv ads.
Those problems aside, this movie is great. The acting is good. As a huge Zach Galifianakis fan, I'm extremely biased about his performance. Ed Helms delivers well (if not a bit too Andy-ish at times), Ken Jeong (Señor Chang from Community) comes through with some shining lines, and Jeffrey Tambor brrings in a few brief but hilarious moments. Even the parts of the cast I wasn't familiar with do a passable job, no real praiseworthy accomplishments, but few completely dead moments.
The pacing is another strong point. There are a few moments without a laugh, but the film keeps the story moving and basically stays entertaining from start to finish.
I'm a huge believer in the notion that first and foremost movies are made to be entertaining. Every scene doesn't have to be completely original or artistic. As long as a movie knows what it is, and doesn't try too hard, it can be enjoyed fully. The Hangover seems totally self-aware throughout, going for screwball comedy and nothing more. Many of the negative reviews I've read state the opinion that this movie is just stupid. I say of course it's stupid, it's supposed to be. This style of comedy is mostly zany and shocking gags with just a hint of intelligent humor, mostly in the form of references, that are meant to float by. Anyone claiming this movie is stupid has missed the point entirely. I say loosen that tie, get unbuttoned, and learn to laugh at dick and fart jokes.
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The skinny:
* Pros: Light and funny, easy to watch
* Cons: Overly methodical, predictable, you've seen 1/3 of the jokes already
Make an Assessment:
This is a good film, certainly worth watching now that it's out in the home theater domain. The humor is often base and crude, so my Grandma's house might not have been the ideal venue. I don't know yet if it stacks up (in my mind) to other uber-popular naughts comedies like Superbad, Knocked Up, Juno, Wedding Crashers, Old School and Dodgeball. I tend to want to enjoy more obscure movies, but this one could be considered a good pop guilty pleasure.
Overall Review Score (I haven't figured out how I want to do this yet):
* Grade: B
* Score: 85%
* If it were a movie: ★★★★
* My Feelings: ☺
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