Very Bad Trip 2

The gang is back. This time Stu is getting married to Lauren in Thailand. After a quiet night, Stu, Alan and Phil wake up in a seedy apartment in Bangkok. Doug is back at the resort, but Lauren's brother Teddy is missing. There's a monkey with a severed finger, Alan's head is shaved, Stu has a tattoo on his face, and they can't remember any of it. And Mr Chow is back.

This is just like the first one, except this one is crazier and in Bankok. Everything is bigger. Alan is crazier. Mr Chow is more ridiculous. The humor is cruder. It's essentially repeating the same story and some dismiss it for that. I personally don't.

I enjoyed part I quite a lot and so I was looking forward to seeing part II, and it didn't disappoint me. It was actually quite a surprise, as I found part II to be better than part I.

Why? Well the story for starters, it was more clever and it had more adrenalin rush to it. There was always something really strange going on and the guys were chin-deep in trouble. I was laughing a lot through out the movie, and had my toes curling as well because of the awkwardness of some of the scenes.

And having the story set in hectic Bangkok was brilliant, because it really spiced up the movie quite a lot. However, I would personally have liked to see more of the seedy places that exist in Bangkok. There was too much focus on the rich and glamorous places. Not saying that they didn't use the seedy places, far from it, but they could have used it more, as Bangkok is well-known for them.

Bradley Cooper (playing Phil), Ed Helms (playing Stu) and Zach Galifianakis (playing Alan) really have great chemistry and together they really carry the movie with excellence. Each of them make the other stand out and support the comedy of one another. They are so well-cast for these movies. And I must admit that this was the best part I have ever seen Ken Jeong (playing Mr. Chow) portray. His quirky blunt manner was so amazing in this movie.

Be prepared for an adventure like none other. An adventure with amnesia, drug-muling monkey and lots of fun. "The Hangover II" is a great comedy.

Greetings again from the darkness. Two years ago, director Todd Phillips presented a highly creative, hilarious, raunchy, unique film comedy called The Hangover. And now, he does it again. He presents that SAME film again. I am unsure whether this is a sequel or remake. The only substantial change is the setting ... Bangkok instead of Vegas.

Now I fully understand WHY most sequels follow the formula created by the successful original film. Filmmakers want to keep their audience satisfied. If it worked once, it will work again. Especially when the first film grosses a half-billion dollars! So the chances are very good that if you liked the first one, you will also enjoy this one. But for me, I get excited for creative filmmakers ... not re-treads.

The key characters are all back and played by the same guys: Bradley Cooper (Phil), Ed Helms (Stu), Zach Galifianakis (Alan), Justin Bartha (Doug), and Ken Leong (Mr. Chow). All of these guys have worked constantly since the first film, but it makes perfect sense to return to the scene that put them on the Hollywood map.

This time around, Stu (Ed Helms) draws the long straw and has the storyline based on his pending marriage to Jamie Chung (Sucker Punch). Stu's "wolfpack" buddies agree to a one-beer bonfire beach bachelor party, but of course, something goes very wrong. The next morning finds our boys staggering to regain consciousness in a sleazy Bangkok hotel with no recollection of the previous night's events. The only clues are a monkey, a severed finger, a facial tat and international criminal Mr. Chow.

No need for me to go into any details or spoil any moments. You know the drill if you have seen the first. What follows is nearly two hours of debauchery and moments of varying levels of discomfort, gross-out and comedic skits.

Supporting work is provided by Paul Giamatti, Jeffrey Tambor, and Mason Lee (Ang Lee's son). There is also a cameo by Nick Cassavetes as a tattoo artist. This role was originally meant for Mel Gibson, and later Liam Neeson. Cast and crew protests kept Gibson out and Neeson's scenes were cut when re-shoots were necessary.

I feel tricked by Mr. Phillips. The first Hangover had me excited that a new comedic genius had entered Hollywood and would quickly blow away the Judd Apatow recycle jobs and copycats. Instead, we get Todd Phillips copying Todd Phillips.

This is certainly an above-average comedy and there are plenty of laughs from the characters we kind of feel like we know - though, wish we didn't. Just know going in that are witnessing a clear attempt at cashing in, not a desire to wow.

Even though this movie was almost the exact same plots as part 1 I really didn't care becuase it was still great and made me laugh a ton plus it was much crazier than the first.

The premise of The Hangover: Part II is nearly identical to the first – the same "wolfpack" from the first movie, Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Doug (Justin Bartha) and the not entirely welcome man- child, Alan (Zach Galifianakis), throw a wild, out-of-control bachelor party that results in the loss of an important character.

At first blush, it seemed as though this movie, with its recycled premise and familiar characters another painfully obvious attempt to wring the last few cents out of a Hollywood cash cow. However, director Todd Phillips, easily quiets these criticisms by playfully mocking the similarities and by upping the raunchiness, insanity, and humor of the movie.

Galifianakis once again steals the show as the perfectly crafted weirdo Alan, who's sporadic and bizarre interjections enliven momentary lulls in the movie. Alan's antics are further accentuated by the return of the humorous and insane criminal, Chow (Ken Jeong). Combined with new, shockingly outrageous situations, the duo keeps the laughs coming and in doing so gets the audience to forget the movie's lack of originality.

Regardless of my strong recommendation, wholesome moviegoers and those who are wholeheartedly convinced that this movie is nothing but a remake should skip The Hangover: Part II because, to be honest, this isn't a movie to be taken seriously. It is not a cinematic masterpiece by any stretch and the storyline is weak at best, but if you're willing to venture into the bowels of Bangkok for a raunchy, silly, sophomoric, and extremely amusing movie, call up your wolf pack and head to see an amusing movie you'll never forget – hopefully.