The Hangover Part III

I'll admit that I am a big Hangover fan. I think the first is one of the funniest films ever, and I am one of the few people that actually enjoyed the second, albeit to a lesser degree. I love being included with the hi-jinks of "The Wolfpack" and I find the situations they get into to be hilarious, no matter how extreme or uncomfortable they are. Phil, Stu, Alan, and Chow are all unique characters that audiences have come to enjoy. *PLEASE VOTE IN THE USER POLL ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF YOUR SCREEN!*

It's no secret that critic reviews have not been kind to The Hangover Part III. I've heard reviews calling it completely unfunny, extremely dark, unnecessary, etc. While I wouldn't go as far to call it all of those things, Part III is certainly showing signs of age, or at least signs that Phillips is running out of jokes for these characters. 

This is officially the longest that Doug has been conscious in Vegas

Stu, Phil (great hair!), and Alan: we shall miss thee
but tis` your time to go...

The Hangover Part III does away with the formula of bachelor-party-gone-wrong-due-to-Alan-drugging-everyone and instead focuses on getting Alan help. After an unfortunate mishap with a giraffe, which wasn't as funny as I thought it was going to be, it's clear that Alan needs to change his ways. His family and "friends" stage an intervention and begin their drive to a treatment facility in Arizona. Things go terribly wrong when Marshall (John Goodman) captures the trio and assigns them the task of bringing him Leslie Chow on a silver platter. I was actually really impressed with how full circle some of the plot details in this movie come around. For example, Marshall is actually mentioned by Black Doug in the FIRST film, something that most of us just shrugged off most likely. The break from the normal trying-to-recall-the-previous-night situation is refreshing, but at the same time it feels really awkward. Lord knows people would have complained if Phillips had copied and pasted again, but watching the Wolfpack function without headaches and face tattoos is somewhat less compelling and the air of mystery found in the other two films is not present here. Despite this, there are several callback moments to the previous films (Carlos!) that are touching and/or funny that fans of the series should love. All in all it ends in an appropriate manner that gives us peace with our on-screen buddies and a feel-good final montage to the tune of Kanye West. 

"I bereive I can fry!
I berieve I can touch the sky!
I tink about it ev'ry night and day
Spread my rings and fry away!"

John Goodman in a forgettable role. Who woulda
thought? But hey! There's Black Doug!

The real question on everyone's mind isn't about the story. It's about whether or not Part III is funny. Clearly we all know that the first one is the best of the series; people want that magic recaptured. Part III does not do that, but then again, neither did Part II and I enjoyed that one more than most. But I think I have found the appropriate breakdown of these movies. The first film was so funny because it had a bunch of one-liners (mainly from Chow and Alan) AND it had ridiculous situations. Part II was light on the one-liners but the situations the Wolfpack got into were turned up several notches ("F**k the police!!" anyone?). Part III is certainly the least extreme of the trilogy, but it features several quotable moments. Whereas there were parts in the first two films that shocked me (particularly the second), Part III plays it pretty safe. Other than a hilarious mid-credits follow-up scene, there were none of those "OMG there's a tiger in the bathroom" moments. It's rather unfortunate because that's become a bit of a staple of the Hangover series. 

Taking that explanation into account, there is one distinguishing factor of The Hangover Part III. More so than any of the previous films this is Alan and Chow's movie, for better or worse. If either of those characters have begun to annoy you, then this film won't do you any favors. Stu and Phil, and many other characters for that matter, are given a lot less comedic material to work with. Alan's role gets somewhat larger here and he is as dumb as ever, but I really thought he redeemed himself by the end of the movie. Chow gets a significantly larger role which is both good and bad. I think he was so damn funny in the first film because he also had that "mystery" that made audiences want to see more of him. After Part III I can confidently say that I have had my fill of Alan and Chow. They didn't go overboard in the film, it just becomes clear throughout the film that the series' proverbial fuel tank is near empty. 

#atmydadsfuneral #lol #hungry #wolfpack

I think I probably enjoyed Part III more than most. It was the least funny of the series, but in terms of overall quality I would put it only slightly behind or tied with the Part II. If you didn't like Part II then just wait for this one. Despite a plot we aren't used to, a lack of extreme situations, and a larger dose of Alan and Chow, I found it to be a fitting end for a trilogy that never really needed to happen in the first place. 

A lot of people may be burnt out on the Wolfpack, but I had one more adventure left in me and in my opinion, it was worthwhile, although a little forgettable. 

But now that Part III is done, it's time to put away the Jager and the roofies and move on. 

Pros:

• The Wolfpack is still fun to follow around the desert. They may not be as good as they used to be, but it's still entertaining nonetheless. Many of the callbacks to the previous films were appreciated
• The plot may be somewhat awkward and unnecessary, but the underlying story about Alan growing up and the Wolfpack moving on is fitting and really makes the trilogy feel like it has come full circle. It gives some closure to the audience
• Most of the critics are wrong. This film may be the weakest in the series, but it's still a lot funnier than many comedies out there. There are several one-liners that had me really going, particularly Alan's discussion about his apps
• While it's probably a walk in the park for them at this point, all of the actors still give good performances. Between this and the TV show Community I have had enough of Ken Jeong for a while though
• I thought the ending was great and the mid-credits scene was one of the funniest in the series

Cons:

• There are some jokes that fall HARD. When this starts to happen it's a definitive sign that it's time for the series to go. I think Part III pulls it off, but barely
• The extreme situations are largely missing in this iteration. We have come to expect these moments so when they don't happen it's a bit disappointing
• Overall the plot is fuddled and doesn't really convey the message about friendship that it wanted to. I was far more concerned with Alan growing up than I was with his and Leslie Chow's friendship
• As the wear and tear in the series begins to show more obviously in this final film it becomes more and more apparent that this was a trilogy that never needed to happen in the first place

Rath's Review Score: 7/10