'The Hangover Part II' - What Critics Say

Todd Phillips' greatly-anticipated sequel to his debauchery-filled 2009 filck opened Thursday (and grossed $31.7 million it's first night). 

See what the critics are saying about The Hangover Part II, starring Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis. 

"What happens in Bangkok isn’t as much fun as when it happened in Vegas, but it’s still worth the trip," writes The Hollywood Reporter's Michael Rechtshaffen. "Although the ensuing Bangkok adventure is not without its shocking, laugh-out-loud moments, too much of Part II seems content to trot out variations on the earlier bits, like your joke-cracking uncle who believes that any punch line that gets a chuckle the first time bears repeating — over and over again."

Roger Ebert was more put off by the film's raunchy fare. "Is this some kind of a test?" he asks. "The Hangover, Part II plays like a challenge to the audience's capacity for raunchiness. It gets laughs, but some of them are in disbelief. As if making sure no one was not offended, it has a montage of still photos over the closing titles that include one cruel shot that director Todd Phillips should never, ever have used."

But, the New York Times takes the opposite stance, saying, "The funniest, most reckless moments in “The Hangover Part II,” the largely mirthless sequel to the 2009 hit “The Hangover,” take place in the final credits, when still images flash by detailing the latest misadventures of the story’s overgrown lost boys." Adding, "he credits just emphasize how deeply square this flick is."

"This movie is such a disappointment, I can't even express what I'm feeling," Rolling Stone's Peter Travers lamented. Though he did admit a few things made him laugh. The highlight being the monkey. Travers says, "I'm talking disappointment here, I am not talking disaster. Of course you're going to get a few laughs. But you're not going to get what you want, which is the thrill of the first time."