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The Hangover

Column: The Word on Films | Date Published: Wednesday, 24 June 09 | Author: Mark Russell | | 2 years, 7 months ago

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The Hangover is, quite predictably, a great hangover movie. It follows a bunch of guys waking up in Vegas after the bachelor party to end all bachelor parties. Extreme and wacky remnants then convince us just how extreme and wacky the previous night was. The most immediate problem confronting them - they've lost the groom.

This is Dude, Where's My Car? for basically the same audience, although we're slightly older and slightly more sophisticated now. It's not to be taken too seriously. The opening half an hour is a succession of montages set to R&B songs. Slow motion driving to Vegas. Slow motion casino walking. And of course, slow motion bikini babes. All this is set to exactly the kind of music you love when you're drunk.

The main problem with The Hangover is its marketing. If you go to a cinema on even a semi-regular basis, you've seen the preview of this film at least a few times. As such, you've seen most of the major set-pieces and a fair chunk of the hilarity. These aren't the only jokes, but the others are mainly designed to set up the ones you've seen. As such, it's like being surrounded by a bunch of stoners - you can appreciate why they're laughing, but you just can't raise a guffaw.

The ensemble works well. Everyone has their role and fulfils it admirably. Bradley Cooper is the standout in his first foray out of a sleazy bad guy role...into a sleazy good guy role. A solid comedy, but detract half a star if you've seen the trailer.

	Terminator Salvation: It's been a few years since the Terminator canon was slightly weakened by the third instalment. We've made it right round the wheel of rehashings again, and Terminator Salvation has popped its head up. We're post-apocalypse now, following a grown-up John Connor (Christian Bale) in his struggle against the machines. He's part of a rag tag bunch of resistance fighters, desperately battling the vicious Skynet. The bonus storyline told in tandem concerns Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), who received the death penalty back in 2003 only to wake up in this futuristic hell. The two storylines are pretty much unrelated and spend the bulk of the film this way. The writers have ignored many opportunities to forge them together, instead relying on a parallel structure that is quite awkward in practice. Terminator Salvation is a reasonable action film. It overuses CGI and has more explosions than plot points but it has the power to keep you entertained. That is if you can get past the disappointment of it following in the footsteps of some of the greatest sci-fi/action/thrillers of all time. The first two films are, of course, brilliant. The third is passable but with this offering we're officially in a scripting slump. Story and character have been sold to Wile E. Coyote in exchange for a hell of a lot of TNT. If this were the only film, and the others hadn't invested us in the struggle, I don't know that we'd even remember John Connor's name once the credits had rolled. Director McG is currently developing Terminator 5 though, so it can only get better - right?
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	State Of Play: Based on the BBC series of the same name, State of Play is a solid investigative journalism film - full of scandal, politics and plenty of hitting the pavement. There's nothing wildly original in terms of story, but the film is solid and enjoyable and boasts some great performances. Cal (Russell Crowe) is a cynical, hard-nosed Washington Globe journo, who (reluctantly) takes keen rookie reporter Della (Rachel McAdams) under his wing to help him investigate and report on two suspicious deaths that initially seem unrelated. Cue surprises, cover-ups and confrontations galore. State of Play boasts an impressive cast, although the performances vary. Helen Mirren is fantastic as the editor of the paper - exasperated and sardonic at every turn - while Ben Affleck is passable but not remarkable as a Congressman with a secret. In their quest to uncover the conspiracy, McAdams and Crowe actually work quite well with each other, as she softens and complements his gruff, ambitious exterior. They're not quite one of the great journalistic teams, but there's definitely chemistry. The pair skulk around Washington D.C, doing the work of police detectives, solving crimes while almost breaking the law themselves - all in the pursuit of the story. The pace of the film matches the urgent energy brought on by pending deadlines and the bustling newsroom, and all in all State of Play feels like it could be a realistic portrayal of political journalism. State of Play is an exciting and interesting few hours, perhaps not entirely memorable, but in no way a waste of time.
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