Reviewed by Johnny McNair

 

Warner Home Entertainment – 108 mins  – 2009 – Unrated – 1080p Widescreen 2.40: 1 – Dolby TrueHD Audio 5.1 – Digital Copy

 

 

With the success of the Judd Apatow films, the ‘R-Rated’ comedy train is back on track. Because of this the latest batch of comedic films have taken the shot at winning that raunchy audience, but one film hit it so big that it’s earned the odd title of becoming the highest rated R-rated comedy of all time. The Hangover, a film with a cast of non-household names literally came out of nowhere and through heavy word of mouth made a truckload of money. The summer’s biggest comedy is now available on Blu-ray from Warner Home Entertainment, so if you’re planning on going to a bachelor party any time soon, see this movie first.

 

MOVIE

 

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas…right? Unfortunately for four buddies this turns out to be more than just a catchy slogan. Phil (Bradley Cooper), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and Stu (Ed Helms) throw a bachelor party for their BFF Doug (Justin Bartha) in sin city itself, Las Vegas. It all sounds like some it’s be a fun time that the boys will remember, but then after a long night of boozing it up, the guys wake up and don’t remember anything, and to make things worse the groom to be is MIA. All they have are a bunch of clues that don’t make any sense such as a baby, a stolen police car, a knocked out tooth, a tiger, a stripper named Jade (Heather Graham), and of course a sleeping man in their bed who happens to be former heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson. This sets up an adventure to assemble all the pieces that will hopefully lead to the boys finding the groom and getting him to his wedding on time.

 

Director Todd Phillips, who also helmed Old School, goes back to his frat boy ways to deliver a comedy that is aimed at just that kind of audience. What makes this film work is not the script, but it’s more the chemistry from the cast who are not the traditional comedy actors (i.e. Sandler, Carey, Stiller) that we’re used to seeing. Cooper, Galifianakis, Helms, and Bartha play their roles as average guys who are caught in a very bad situation, and this makes them likeable. The supporting actors who pop in and out such as Jeffrey Tambor, Mike Eps and Ken Jeong, who steals the movie playing an insane Asian drug lord in a scene that will stay with you for a long time.

 

The script is very uneven and watching the film a second time you will notice that various things you saw during the first viewing feel stale. Basically you just have a few funny moments but nothing that is solid enough to hold them together for long. There was plenty of room for tightening and better pacing, but that was instead filled in with another gag, whether it hit or missed doesn’t really matter. A film like the 80’s Tom Hanks comedy Bachelor Party still works after 20 years, but it remains to be seen if The Hangover will still have legs even five years from now. The Hangover came out at the right time and found an audience that was looking for something other than a silly Sandra Bullock comedy. And with a worldwide gross of over $450 million no one is complaining about issues with the script.

 

Anyone seeing this film for the first time as it spins in their Blu-ray player will definitely get some laughs, because there are some laugh out loud moments. Besides director Todd Phillips, star Bradley Cooper really benefited from the success of this film because he’s been pushed from his basic co-starring roles to the possibility of being a leading man. Whether or not you think The Hangover is worth all the hype surrounding it is up to your comedic taste. It’s not as well written as one of the Judd Apatow films, but particularly because of the loot it brought in, The Hangover will have a place in film comedy history.

 

VIDEO

 

Offering a full 1080p image in a 2.40:1 aspect ratio The Hangover looks good on Blu-ray delivering all the bright colors you expect from Vegas. Skin tones are solid showing off plenty of details in the close-ups, but the blacks could be richer, thought they look acceptable. Night shots and darker sequences spill out waves of grain and could have been much more sharper, but overall, mainly because this is a new movie, the transfer looks fine despite some minor issues.

 

AUDIO

 

The Blu-ray delivers a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 sound mix that works well, allowing for crystal clear dialogue and sound effects. For those with a surround sound system, your front speakers will get more of a workout than the background speakers, because even though there are action-filled moments, the audio effects have been toned down to focus on dialogue rather than flash. The audio will not blow you away, but it does an effective job and should not disappoint.

 

EXTRAS

 

Hmmmm….Anyone smell a double dip here? The bonus features are pretty anorexic, particularly for a film that made so much money for Warner. Yes, you get both the theatrical and unrated versions of the film and a PiP commentary, but nothing else is worth bragging about, which is a hint that there will be an ‘Ultimate,’ ‘Definitive,’ or some kind of special edition that will be squeezed through the cracks one day.

 

The Director, Todd Phillips and stars Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, and Ed Helms are featured in a Picture-in-Picture video commentary, but even though is sounds like this could be fun it gets lame real fast.

 

The Madness of Ken Jeong is an 8 minute featurette that displays why this guy is on his way to getting his own starring movie soon.

 

Action Mash-Up is a useless minute long compilation of the film’s action shots.

A basic gag reel…no biggie.

 

The Three Best Friends Song has the buddies from the movie singing the friends song featured in the movie.

 

Photographs from the missing camera highlights over 100 new odd pics that were taken from the little kid’s cam.

 

Map of Destruction is an interactive map that lets you follow the path through Sin City that the guys took.

 

The Dan Band sings the famous Irene Cara ‘Fame’ song.

 

Mike Tyson sings In The Air Tonight…Oh yes.

 

Finally, there’s a Digital Copy so you can have a Hangover on the go.

 

BOTTOM LINE

 

The Hangover is a comedy that either you will love, or you just don’t get at all, but while not the perfect or best comedy you’ll ever see, it does have some very funny moments. This Blu-ray offers a good picture and audio, but the bonus features are so thin that you have to suspect a special edition will be coming one day. Word is that there will be a sequel to The Hangover, but after pulling in close to a half billion worldwide it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out. If you saw this film in the theaters and loved it, this is a must buy for you, but all others may way to give it a rent first to be sure.

 

SCORES: (out of 5):

 

Movie: 3.0

Video: 4.0

Sound: 3.5

Extras: 2.5

Bottom Line: 3.0