Review: The Hangover Part III

by Trevor Kirkendall

★★★

In 2009, a little movie called “The Hangover” opened and made a pretty big splash with audiences and critics alike. I was kind of skeptical of the film judging from the trailer. It looked like just another raunchy comedy with no plot that would be satisfying only to the college crowd. What we got was something so much more that that. It was smart, something you don’t see in a typical comedy. And it wasn’t all that raunchy either. But then they had to follow it up with “The Hangover Part II,” a carbon copy of the first film. Only this time, the setting was different and the jokes were raunchier. Even the main characters didn’t act the same as they did previously. It was absolutely awful. So what does the inevitable “Part III” going to bring to the series? Fortunately, it is a vast improvement.

“The Hangover Part III” opens with the death of Sid (Jeffery Tambor), who is the father to Alan (Zach Galifianakis). The family, including Alan’s brother in law Doug (Justin Bartha), decides it’s best that Alan enter into a rehabilitation center to try and figure out what’s wrong with him. Fans of the other films will know there is quite a bit wrong with Alan. He agrees to go to the rehab center and is accompanied by Doug and his best friends Phil (Bradley Cooper) and Stu (Ed Helms).

They never quite make it there, and its not because they got drunk and wake up in a strange place with no knowledge of the previous night. They’re ambushed on the highway and taken captive by none other than the man who sold Alan the drugs in the first film, Black Doug (Mike Epps). He’s working for his drug dealer boss Marshall (John Goodman) who has a bone to pick with The Wolfpack.

He wants them to find Leslie Chow (Ken Jeong) who has just broken out of a Bangkok prison and his headed to the west coast. Mr. Chow has stolen millions of dollars worth of gold bricks from Marshall and he wants them back. He holds Doug hostage until they bring Chow and the gold bricks back to him.

Unlike the second installment to the trilogy, “Part III” does not rehash the plot of the original once again. “Part II” was an absolute abomination for its choice to copy Jon Lucas and Scott Moore’s brilliant screenplay almost scene-for-scene changing only the location of the events. If you missed the second film, you missed nothing. Just watch the original twice and you’ll be good.

Writer and director Todd Phillips, working once again with his “Part II” co-writer Craig Mazin, have completely redeemed themselves from that garbage of a script they called “Part II.” There are no plot points from the first two that repeat themselves. This is a completely original idea, which is a very refreshing way to close off this series. There is an appearance from Stu’s stripper girlfriend (Heather Graham) he married briefly in the original, and her kid (who Alan calls Carlos).

The Wolfpack only drink a very small amount of alcohol together. They are completely sober for their entire adventure. It brings a different kind of perspective to the film. We’ve already seen these guys run around drunk and confused for two whole movies. This time we see a more mature and determined Wolfpack (well, okay, a much more mature and determined Stu and Phil; Alan is still Alan).

What’s made these movies so successful is the chemistry between Cooper, Helms and Galifianakis. In the original film, these were three different guys on three very different career paths. If you didn’t know who they were prior to 2009, you know who they are now. And they were paired together so perfectly, something you don’t see too often. In “Part II” they worked well together, but you could tell that even they knew the movie was terrible. But with a much better screenplay to work from, they really work well together in “Part III.”

The plot is, for the most part, pretty well put together. It definitely has a different feel to it than its predecessors. “Part III” is a bit more gritty. Since plot and story seems to be of greater focus for Phillips and Mazin this time around, the jokes do suffer some. It’s not as funny as one might expect. The trailers don’t give all the jokes away so there are some surprises in there. But overall, the film has a more suspenseful element at times, rather than just one crude toilet joke after another (which was “Part II’s” downfall). If the raunchy jokes are what you came for, then you’ll want to wait for just a moment when the credits roll at the end. There is an additional scene just for you.

“Part III” is a pretty satisfying way to close off this series. I’m not sure they’ll surprise us with a fourth installment somewhere down the line, so this is it for the Wolfpack. It’s not on par with the original, but how many sequels ever are? It is a satisfying was to close out this trilogy. Just don’t expect your stomach muscles to be sore after its over.