The Hangover Part III Review

In 2009 we got surprised by one of the best comedies in recent memory.

In 2011 we got treated to a carbon copy of the original that nobody asked for and we all tried to forget.

In 2013 we get the finale of this unplanned trilogy, and believe me when I say I couldn't be any happier.

No, I'm not happy because The Hangover Part III was a hilarious return to the feel of the original. I'm happy because we can finally let this die. Hopefully.

Unlike the second film, this time around they at least went in a new direction. One of the biggest complaints with The Hangover Part II was undoubtedly that it was a copy and paste of the original. They changed the location and the character they are trying to find, but the course of events played out in a very similar manner. You knew what to expect, which immediately took away from the originals blindsided hilarity. And when they tried to top the original, it ended up being cringe worthy and offensive.

With The Hangover Part III they threw out the wedding/bachelor party blackout/find lost buddy format from the first two. That part was a no-brainer though. They got it right the first time and it got panned the second time around. The least I can say is that they learned from their mistakes.

This chapter finds the Wolf Pack spearheading an intervention for Alan (Zach Galifianakis), who has been neglecting his medication for his "mental complications" for a few months now. On route to bringing him to a treatment center they get kidnapped and dragged into a feud between Marshall (John Goodman), and Lesley Chow (Ken Jeong), that spun off from the events of the first two movies. Doug (Justin Bartha) gets taken as collateral and the rest of the pack are sent on their way to find and bring back Chow.

If you have seen the trailers for this movie then you already knew most of that. As is the trend these days, the trailers tell way too much. You see everything you need to know about the plot in less than two and half minutes, along with most of the laughs as well. A better part of the humor here has already been diluted through months of marketing, with the moments around them in the movie lacking any humor whatsoever.

There are a few good laughs hidden throughout, but at no point are you at risk of spilling your drink from laughing hysterically or missing any dialogue because it can't be heard over the collective laughter of the crowd.

Most of the humor that works centers around Alan. While the original was very much an ensemble comedy with Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms) and Alan all playing unique characters with a hilarious rapport with one another. This time around it's very much the Alan show. This isn't a horrible concept as Alan happens to be an incredibly funny character, but Phil and Stu essentially turn into tired versions of their former selves, playing the same tunes they've played before, while Alan seems to have been the only one of the three that has grown over the trilogy. Their only humor comes through their responses to Alan's actions or comments.

Some of the humor seems to be just thrown in for shock value and completely misses the mark. Most notably being the highly marketed Giraffe vs. Bridge sequence. This happens very early during the movie, and acts as a catalyst of sorts to the events that follow, but it's almost cringe worthy how poorly planned out and executed it was. I don't know who thought that decapitating a giraffe would bring any comic value to the movie, and even Alan's response to the event when it unfolds adequately sums up the general feeling towards the whole sequence.

Another big complaint on my part was the heavy inclusion of the Lesley Chow character. He worked so well in the original because he was such an enigma. Very little was known about the man who hopped out of that trunk, flashing his manhood about while swinging a tire iron. And it worked. Ever since the sequel, his screen time has been upgraded and it turns out he's not actually that funny. I assume this was done in some vain attempt to carry over some of what made the original work. Instead he has turned into a pathetic, crude, offensive, scene stealing (and not in a good way) sore on this franchise that is just here to serve as more shock value.

Rounding out the rest of the cast we have John Goodman playing the "villain" Marshall, Heather Graham as Jade the escort from the original, Jeffrey Tambor as Alan's father Sid, and Melissa McCarthy as a pawn store owner named Cassie. All of these characters bring the movie to it's high points. They all fit their roles well and offer a nice breather from the main cast when things start to get a little out of control.

While I don't feel like this was a waste of my money, I'm not going to strongly encourage anyone to run out and see this. If you want a bit of a closer to the Hangover trilogy then you may find some solace here. Though with the story arc of the first two movies being tied up in each one, this one doesn't conclude anything that you wouldn't know you were missing without seeing this movie. But there are a few laughs to be had here, however tainted they may be from over-marketing.

If you're just in the mood for something humorous then I would recommend just waiting until next week when This Is the End hits theaters.

And as for The Hangover saga, I hope they stick to their word that this is the conclusion of the trilogy and let it go before we have to forget there were any other movies after the original.

*I gave The Hangover Part III a 4/10 on IMDB.