The Hangover

2009, US, directed by Todd Phillips
The weather in Boston was irredeemably awful for the month of June, and when July started on the same note it seemed like the only thing to do was take refuge in a crowded pre-Fourth of July movie theatre. The Hangover was, ironically, the appropriate cure for wet-weather blues, with the audience proving highly receptive to what was one of the most consistently funny films I've seen in a long while. At times, you almost wish that the filmmakers didn't feel the need to explain some of the more bizarre aspects of the aftermath of what appears to have been a truly epic drinking bout - they do leave a few details to the imagination, such as the role played by a chicken - and one or two of the crudest moments seemed to leave the audience cold, but the script is well-served by the three lead actors, with the shambolic Zach Galifianakis - not generally to my taste, particularly in his repetitive "Between Two Ferns" web series - especially well cast.