6/10/2023 0 Comments Hangover script itIn a single scene, the movie manages to reduce itself to the level of uninspired dick jokes and tired homophobic humor. The rationale seems to be that the only way to outdo a drunken wedding in Vegas is to bring about the unthinkable: gay sex. Suddenly the frame is full of them, previously unnoticed on the transgender staff, which is designed to set the target audience into a boisterous combination of laughter and retching. Remember in “The Hangover” when we discover that Stu character got married the night before to stripper Heather Graham? In the spirit of ratcheting up the outrageousness, it is revealed in the sequel (at almost exactly the same place in the narrative) that not only did he have sex with another stripper, but she’s got a penis. Bangkok, after all, is internationally known for its extraordinary transgender culture, which “The Hangover Part II” takes as a gift. can turn Asian caricatures into elaborate and uninspired bawdy jokes. The reason for putting the sequel in Thailand appears to be little more than the ease with which Phillips et al. Opposite the unhelpful and silent monk is a white tattoo artist who gives the guys some directions and advice. Opposite the incompetent Thai police there’s Paul Giamatti as the white gangster who runs the town. Ken Jeong is the only Asian character our heroes meet in the city that has a real role in the film. I could go on and on about the tired and more than a little condescending “Westerner abroad” motif that dominates the film’s portrayal of Bangkok. Never mind that this is a non-violent religious order, it’s apparently hilarious when a big silent Thai gentleman in robes beats a bunch of Americans for just opening their mouths. When the guys try talking to the monks, one of the holy men takes his giant stick and starts beating them. Naturally, the monks have taken a vow of silence, which turns out to be not only inconvenient but also violent. There’s a wonderful moment when, desperately trying to find Teddy, our confused Americans go to a Buddhist monastery somewhere outside of the city. Not that the unfortunate representation of Thailand and its people stops when the dudes leave their wedding resort. Teddy is actually just a cello-playing boy genius because he’s an Asian teenager in a movie. The set-up doesn’t even try to legitimize itself with humor, in the manner of most other stereotype-dependent comedies. He’s also pressured his son into going to Stanford as a tween, and to become a virtuoso at the cello. The father, of course, is a strict disciplinarian who doesn’t like the lame dentist her daughter has brought home. First off, there’s Stu’s (Ed Helms) fiancée and her family. Passing aside the portrayal of an entire city as a whirling black hole of criminality and enigmatic savagery (in a way it’s like “Heart of Darkness” with dick jokes), there are plenty more obvious ways in which “The Hangover Part II” just misses the boat on racial representation entirely. “The Hangover Part II” isn’t so much outrageously hilarious as it is loud, racially insensitive and homophobic. What is clearly an attempt to really push the envelope turns out to be a veritable “Carlos Mencia-fication” of the jokes. And honestly, it’s also the sequel’s biggest failure. The only real difference between the two films is the degree of over-the-top depravity. Phillips and his writers seem to have approached this sequel with the intention of taking the original’s already outrageous comedy and bumping it up to the next level. So then what exactly were they trying to do, if they clearly didn’t put much effort into updating the story (or even the characters)? The change is in the humor itself. It was very much a nod to ‘The Godfather.’ ” “We had always planned on calling it ‘The Hangover 2,’ and when we finished the script, I changed the cover page and wrote ‘The Hangover Part II,’ because I think the film lives up to or exceeds the first one. Give Me Blockbusters or Give Me Death: Here’s What’s Really Behind the Box-Office Collapse
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