The Hangover (2009)

Since having a baby, it has been a rare occasion that my wife and I have seen a movie in the theaters; over a year, I think. I am happy to say that leaving our daughter behind and seeing The Hangover was an excellent choice. In The Hangover, four friends travel to Vegas for a bachelor party and somewhere along the way, lose the bachelor and wake up without the faintest idea where they might have left him. This movie is absolutely hilarious, it might be the funniest one I have seen since 2003. The cast of The Hangover has great chemistry. Bradley Cooper, who is starting to come into his own as a leading man, does such a good job that he makes all bachelors jealous that he wasn't present at their party. Ed Helms, of The Office and Daily Show fame, is a great sad-sack side kick, and Justin Batha, who is really underrated, is perfect as the bachelor. The actor who steals the show, though, is the groom's socially-challenged future brother-in-law played by Zach Galifianakis. I would say that 90% of the words that come out of his mouth are drop dead hysterical. He is so deadpan and has such good timing that it is hard to believe the actor is not actually an idiot. What The Hangover has going for it that a lot of other recent comedies do not is that it has a lot of original humor in it. The very idea that three friends are trying to backtrack a debaucherous night that they cannot remember is genius in and of itself and all of the dialogue is very creative. My wife, and everyone else I've talked to, loved this movie; I would recommend it to anyone who is not my mom (or mother-in-law). I had been waiting for quite sometime to find a new movie against which to measure current comedies; while I think Old School is still number one, The Hangover is not too far behind and will make a fine modern measuring stick. I also imagine that this is the type of film that gets funnier with each viewing, so I really look forward to seeing it again soon. I give The Hangover 4 stars.