One night of all-out partying, and you wake up with a crying baby in the closet, a tiger in the bathroom, and a missing friend. What exactly happened?

Describing The Hangover as funny would be an understatement. The comedy starring relatively new faces Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha and Hollywood’s next A-lister Bradley Cooper, packed a whole lot of laughs and suspense throughout, leaving the audience wanting more and exiting the theatre with face and stomach cramps from the perpetual laughing.

Starsky and Hutch director Todd Phillips brings us a film centered around 4 friends on a trip to sin city Las Vegas to celebrate Doug’s (Justin Bartha) bachelor party. The party takes a turn for the worst when they wake up the next morning with a massive hangover and absolutely no recollection of what happened the night before. Their swanky Caesar’s Palace suite is trashed beyond belief and Doug is no where to be found. The remaining 3 then embark on an adventure to trace what happened the night before and find Doug in time for the wedding.

Two thumbs up for the cast in the movie because each character complements the other. The most hilarious character goes to Alan (Zach Galifianakis), Doug’s future brother-in-law. He’s a dimwitted guy craving for friendship and attention, always attempting to impress the other 3 guys but failing ridiculously. He always refers to the guys as his best friends, only to receive sniggers and snide remarks from them.

Along with him is Stu (Ed Helms), the worrywart of the group. On an average day, he is extremely proper and always encourages the group to do the right thing. However, as they all uncover mysteries of what happened the night before, we find that Stu unleashing his dormant wild side and it kick-starts his journey of self-discovery for him, giving him courage to break away from his over-possessive girlfriend.

Each character’s acting is commendable, and you won’t expect it from these smaller-time Hollywood actors. Their facial expressions and actions enhance the comedic value of the story like when Alan found the tiger in the bathroom.

For female and male audiences alike, the show is generously laced with steaming hot characters like Phil (Bradley Cooper), who is rumoured to be dating the stunning Jennifer Aniston in real life. He appears half-naked in some scenes and it really is a feast for the eyes. For guys, Stu’s illegitimate wife, Jade (Heather Graham), is definitely a sight for sore eyes.

The cinematography boasts impressive shots of Las Vegas and its nightlights, as well as those during their road-trips. Even though the ending was a quick one, you don’t feel any dissatisfaction with the movie ending abruptly. Everything played out very smoothly and they eventually found Doug in the oddest of places. They return for the wedding, and viewers experience a heart-warming moment during then.

Also be prepared to see a lot of butt-naked guys in the movie. The movie is rated NC-16, as it contains sexual references and some coarse language.

All in all, the moral of the story is amplifying the theme on friendship and loyalty, how these 4 guys stick together no matter what obstacles they face, and their escapades in Vegas.

The movie opens in all theaters around Singapore this week.