The Hangover

The best thing about The Hangover may be it's R-rated comic hi-jinx and the fact it's a bromance comedy that doesn't feature Paul Rudd or Seth Rogen. Four guys on a bachelor party bender spend a wild couple of days in Las Vegas, most of their time trying to figure what happened during the first wild night. It seems they all wake up with amnesia and can't remember the events of the previous evening's revelry.
The Hangover starts out promising enough with some interesting establishing shots of the California-Nevada journey. The quartet awaken with a stupefying hangover and clues (missing tooth, new baby, tiger in the bathroom) that suggest one member's wedding may not take place on schedule. He's the one that's missing. All logic pretty much gets tossed out the sealed penthouse window as the script hops from sitcom-level supporting characters to absurd situations.
This is not a film that cares about motivation as long as there's the chance to crack wise about the effects of debauchery. Considering the director made Road Trip and Old School only puts the juvenile buddy antics in perspective. The Hangover doesn't adhere to the reality it establishes in the beginning. There's never any resistance to their mayhem. The gangsters with guns and trained tigers are props for gags rather than real dangers. A bunch of dudes are dosed with sedatives that give them a collected memory blackout yet they have the stamina to tear up the town for several hours before they pass out - yeah right.
Why didn't they drop some powerful hallucinogen and make it a real movie? The portrayals of women are either shrewish girlfriends or hookers with hearts of gold. The Hangover will never exceed the appeal of Vegas in movies like Singles or even Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Even second-tier crapfests like What Happens in Vegas or Honeymoon in Vegas are easier to swallow.