Un compleanno da leoni

"21 and Over" is like a 21st Century version of "Animal House" and "Porky's" - only this one comes with a bit of a social conscience, as befits the times we live in.

Miles Teller, Skylar Astin. and Justin Chon play buddies from childhood, now ending their time in college, who reunite to celebrate the 21st birthday of one of them, Jeff Chang (Chon). Astin's Casey is the stuffed shirt who's already on the fast track to a career on Wall Street after he graduates; Chon's Jeff is the stressed-out A-student whose dad is pressuring him to ace a med school interview the next day; and Teller's Miller is the Stiffler-type wise-ass who refuses to grow up, convinced that the only life worth living is one patterned after the "American Pie" movies.

Against their better judgment, Astin and Teller- take Chon out for a celebratory bender, resulting in what anyone with any knowledge of how these things customarily work out in the movies can plainly predict. Yet, beyond all the drinking, brawling, sex rituals and generalized pandemonium, "21 and Over" actually has some poignant things to say about friendship and finding that fine line between becoming a mature adult and selling out to a life devoid of fun and joy. Luckily, the screenplay by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore (who also directed the film together) doesn't overdo it in the moralizing department, neatly balancing the insights with a steady stream of ultra-crass frat-boy hijinks. The movie even has some fun skewering the misogyny and sexual double standards that prevail among some of the male youth of today.

The movie is helped immeasurably by the performers who bring both humor and heart to the proceedings. They make the nonsense not only bearable but actually quite enjoyable at times.

For the record, The Hangover is one of my favourite comedies, and I walked out halfway through 21 and Over. The movie is full of jokes and gags that we've all seen before. The basic premise is simple: three college students go out for their friend's 21st birthday, and - shocker- the friend has to be back at his house for a med interview early the next morning. When he gets too drunk to find his house, the hilarity ensues (I wish). This movie could have been good, and I'm not expecting Oscar-worthy here, but instead it was a re-hash of movies we've all seen before. Now, I should also say that I didn't like Project X. However, since the writers from The Hangover were responsible for this movie I thought it would be a fun one to see. Afraid not. At least it was free. My recommendation? If you liked The Hangover, proceed with caution.

This film is about the first 24 hours of a straight A student's 21st birthday.

"21 & Over" is a toned down college version of "The Hangover". The plot is very similar to "The Hangover", and it is wearing thin. Though the parties are ridiculous and the alcohol is plentiful, we all know what will happen and hence the plot does not have the same entertaining effect as the first time around. Fortunately, the subplot of testing the strained friendship and standing up for oneself is a bit refreshing, so "21 & Over" sets itself as slightly different from its parent clone. The Asian female student who swears a lot is the most memorable character, and she deserves a special mention. Her one minute of screen time is so unexpectedly crazy! "21 & Over" is an average comedy, if judged on its own merit. But please, enough with the "The Hangover" clones.

"From the writers of 'The Hangover'" comes "21 and Over," another comedy about people getting really drunk and then having a bunch of crude and insane things happen to them. The difference here is that the three leads are not trying to find their buddy; they're instead trying to find their buddy's house. Oh, and the buddy whose house they're trying to find has passed out and has to be carried from place to place as the circumstances around them continue to get more dire.

Let's back up a bit. It's Jeff Chang's (Justin Chon) 21st birthday. He's a pre-med student who has a big interview the next morning. His best friends, Miller (Miles Teller) and Casey (Skylar Astin), have come to his apartment to surprise him and take him out for drinks, as is the American custom. Upon learning that the biggest interview of his life is the next day, Casey does the responsible thing and says that those plans can be postponed. Miller threatens to keep Jeff Chang up all night if he doesn't come out. "One drink," we're told. Like that's going to happen.

We don't even see Jeff Chang resist the party once it starts. He's loaded by the time we've zoomed forward in time, and only gets worse over the montage depicting the group's bar-hopping. Eventually, he's passed out and time is running out to get him home and to bed. The other two friends are from out of town -- they've all separated once college started, I guess -- so they don't know their way around. They spend nearly the rest of the film attempting to get him into bed before 7AM.

Doesn't this sound familiar? Three guys trolling around a certain location in hopes of finding something, or someone? While doing so, they find themselves in a bunch of "I can't believe it" situations, while also learning things about the others that perhaps should have been better left a secret. When Casey and Miller find a gun in Jeff Chang's pocket, and later learn that he was arrested by the police, we have a mystery on our hands. One whose conclusion is mishandled so badly that I thought there must have been an alternate ending.

It feels too similar, I suppose. We've seen movies that contain situations more shocking than this. When a guy gets run over by a buffalo -- which we don't actually get to see, by the way, because the camera cuts to black before impact -- that winds up being one of the more "crazy" points of the film. Sure, a couple of other moments are funny at the time, if only because at least one of the guys -- Casey -- doesn't seem like he deserved to be put through them, but they're kind of bland for the genre.

There are a few running gags scattered throughout -- always calling Jeff Chang by his full name being one of them -- but most of the humor in "21 and Over" comes from the situations themselves. That can work for some people. Many of you might find a lot of the film funny. It wasn't for me. Watching stupid people act pretty stupid and have bad things happen to them isn't the funniest thing in the world. Like I said, there are a few good moments, but not enough of them to fill the 90-minute running time.

Moving away from the amount of laughter, which is about all that matters in a comedy, the dialogue also leaves a lot to be desired. The film was written and directed by "The Hangover" writers, after all, so that should be expected. It's all profane and silly, and accomplishes one of two things: exposition or forced character development. The dialogue itself rarely attempts to make us laugh. That's a problem, since there's a good deal of time spent walking from place to place.

It says a lot about our main characters that they wind up being chased and/or hated by everyone they come into contact with. They wind up being hunted by at least three groups of people as the film progresses, all of whom show up seemingly at random. These groups are often forgotten about until the script calls for them to pop up for a few minutes. You forget, too, and it makes their reappearances seem to come out of the blue. Sure, the film is about these three guys -- although it's really two of them because Jeff Chang isn't awake for most of his screen time -- but if you want to continue bringing back these secondary characters, at least treat them with a little respect.

I'm sure that all of these actors have talent. Justin Chon turns in the best performance in the film whenever he's awake. Skylar Astin was in "Pitch Perfect" and fared much better there. He delivers every line with great sincerity, but that doesn't work with this type of character. Miles Teller was in "Project X," and plays the same type of role here. He isn't good in either.

"21 and Over" is pretty much the exact type of movie that you expect it to be. If you think "The Hangover" is funny, you'll probably find this movie hilarious as well. It has issues with its characters, dialogue and situations, but if you find it funny you probably won't notice. I didn't like "21 and Over," but if it sounds like your type of thing, you'll probably get some enjoyment out of it.

If the "The Hangover" and "Project X" were fused together to make one new film, the result would be "21 and Over." From the same writers of the Hangover, Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, "21 and Over" is a film that taps into the college demographic by concentrating on some of the issues that affect a lot of students throughout the United States — binge drinking, beer pong games, sex and parties.

This comedy follows three best friends who have fallen out of touch since graduating from high school and transitioning into college. They try to meet up on important occasions, in this case Jeff Chang's (Justin Chon) birthday.

Jeff Chang is finally turning 21 and with that age his best friends, Casey (Skylar Astin) and Miller (Miles Teller), believe comes a new stage in Chang's life; one filled with alcohol and girls.

Chang is a straight-A student who is preparing for an upcoming interview to gain admittance to medical school. In addition to his med school interview, Chang has to worry about his strict father who expects him to follow his family's legacy in becoming a doctor.

For his 21st birthday, Casey and Miller surprise him and take him on a night out. Chang agrees to go out on the condition that they only go for a few drinks and then return home.

They start the night off with a round of drinks, but soon enough begin club hopping, drinking alcohol everywhere they go. The night takes an unexpected turn when Jeff Chang becomes unresponsive after overdrinking.

Following the same formula used in "The Hangover," "21 and Over" attempts to win audiences over by using a lot of crude humor including many physical jokes.

Miles Teller (Miller) takes most of the spotlight with his straightforward dialogue and comedic timing. Justin Chon (Jeff Chang) further pushes the comedy bar with his use of physical humor. Skylar Astin (Casey) plays the typical preppy and awkward sidekick.

Even with a pleasant cast, the film fails to present anything original or creative. While it offers a few laughs, too many scenes are either lackluster, or exaggerated, and some of the humor is forced.

"The Hangover" was much more imaginative than "21 and Over," which has fewer plot twists and a rushed ending.

Even worse, the film reinforces all possible stereotypes including the smart Asian, the party alcoholic white male, crazy Latinas, and out of control college students.

The film is far from a masterpiece. However, if one day after a long day of class or work you simply want to have a few brainless laughs with friends, then "21 and Over" may be the movie for you.