The Stag

Five middle-class Irish men go away on a hiking weekend to celebrate Fionnan's (Hugh O'Conor's) stag-party. They spend a lot of time and money trying to find the appropriate gear, and look forward to enjoying themselves. Unfortunately their leisure-time looks as if it might ruined by the presence of The Machine (aka Richard) (Peter McDonald), a boorish bully, who just so happens to be Fionnan's future brother-in-law.

The basic scenario of John Butler's film provides the basis for a weekend of discovery, as all six men realize that their preconceptions have turned out to be false. Fionnan, a slightly metrosexual personality who did not really want to go away at all, finds out something about his best friend Davin's (Andrew Scott's) past that puts their relationship to the test. The two Kevins (Michael Legge, Andrew Bennett) understand that they are not really social outcasts after all, even in the eyes of Fionnan's father (John Kavanagh). The Machine turns out to be a vulnerable person, covering up his personality deficiencies under a veil of bravado. On the other hand, he has a devil-may-care attitude to life that exposes some of the middle- class pretensions of his five fellow- hikers.

Butler and McDonald's script contains some very funny moments, especially when we see Davin trying to negotiate plans for his wedding with the planner Linda (Justine Mitchell), who obviously has little or no clue about what he is saying. The film contains some neat set pieces - notably the sequence where The Machine inadvertently sets fire to the tent, forcing the hikers to live rough, something they had never really anticipated. They had simply viewed the hike as an extension of their middle-class existence; now they have really been catapulted 'back to nature'. Later on they throw off their clothes and go for a naked midnight swim; unfortunately the idea goes horribly wrong, forcing all of them to confront themselves totally unclothed, both physically and emotionally.

The basic scenario of THE BACHELOR WEEKEND (aka THE STAG) might be a familiar one - the importance of male bonding as a means of self- discovery - but the material has been handled with a light touch. In the end the film has an important point to make about friendship and trust as the basis of any effective relationship between people, irrespective of their gender. Needless to say, the action ends happily with everyone reconciled and Davin manages to wed his fiancée Ruth (Amy Huberman).

Another title for this movie that is, which kind of describes what this is about. But some things cannot be put into words. And like with Hangover you do get the one character who is very much out of place. But without that character the movie would've (probably) been boring, so while you might not want to see him at first, you do realize, that he's necessary.

There are some really bad moments in this, but there are also some very funny ones. While you can see that this is going somewhere (no pun intended), it also stops from time to time (especially that one scene which puts this to a full stop - crucial scene, but there had to had been a better way to handle that). Other than that, pretty solid and decent effort. More drama than comedy though (unlike Hangover in case you started to compare those two)

What may seem like a small fun, light-hearted comedy on the surface, turns out to be an incredibly fun, emotionally moving story which addresses the topic of masculinity in 2014.

It's simple, it's really simple even – it's just a group of guys going on a Stag, and they unfortunately have to share it with the bride's crazy brother, known only as "The Machine" – so what makes it so special? It's an incredibly well executed, heart-warming tale in which every character is unique and lovable, and each actor delivers a fantastic performance in their respective roles. Andrew Scott of BBC's Sherlock is probably the main attraction here, but even his brilliant performance is easily upstaged by Hugh O'Conor and Peter McDonald who completely dissolve into their roles.

Peter McDonald and John Butler's script brings to life these characters in a very fun-loving way. There's nothing outrageous or false about the comedic moments, they're genuine and at times heart-warming, which is a welcome change from what we've come to expect from comedy films. But beyond a few gags there's so much honesty in the storytelling and how the events unfold that you can't help but be drawn to it and immerse yourself in the characters' situation, to the point where you feel like you're a guest at their wedding after the Stag. With so many human, authentic moments, there is something about this tale that will undoubtedly appeal to you – and then there's the comedic aspect of the film, which is above-all, the icing on the cake.

"The Stag" brings forth a very important message about how we have a tendency to approach modern masculinity in a traditional fashion, and the movie acts as a learning experience for both the audience and the characters, resulting in the most heart-warming Irish comedy in the last 5 years.

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I'm not quite sure why this film has so many bad reviews. I know a lot of people saw the trailer and dismissed it as a Hangover wannabe, but this film was far from it.

The cast was amazing and the film had a surprising depth to it, I was expecting a silly stag comedy, but instead got a movie that was really character-focused, rather than situation-focused. I do disagree with the film being renamed for American audiences, because the film has the word "Stag" in it multiple times, and honestly, you can sort of work it out. "The Bachelor Weekend" really does sound like the name of a bad rip off of The Hangover from a $2 shop.

The only other issue I had with it was the lack of chemistry between the bride and the groom, but they're not seen together much in the film so it's pretty much a non-issue. Don't watch this film if you're looking for a trashy comedy, it's probably not for you.

It actually felt a bit like The World's End, there was plenty of comedy, and the cinematography was brilliant, but the main focus was on a few metro men in their mid thirties being strung along by a madman.

A frothy romp, encompassing all those aspects of the human condition designed by a bored deity for the amusement of pilgrims trudging the road to happy destiny: nudity, the institution of marriage, and the question that has bedevilled the Boy Scout movement since Baden Powell's day: whether to jerk off inside or outside the communal tent. But for this critic the film was lifted out of the ordinary by the virtuoso performance of B. McCaughley (as B. McCaughly) as father of the bride. I thought he brought to the role a perfect balance between the gravitas, the graceful aplomb, of a James Robertson Justice and the elfin charm of an arthritic David Norris. His performance will come as no surprise to stage cognoscenti, who will not easily forget Honey, Well I shrunk the Kids (1980), or the hilarious frilly-knickers tour-de-force Under the Boardwalk (1991). And breathes there a cinema buff who has not gripped the edge of his tip-up seat throughout the thrilling 2002 suspense drama The Smoking Hoover? But it is a sad measure of the parochialism of the Irish cinema scene that this splendid thespian is nowadays better known among the tattooed and bearded roughnecks of the Oakland chapter than among the Great Unwashed in the one-and-thruppenies here at home.