New Releases: May 22, 2013

1. The Hangover Part III (Warner Brothers,@3,450 Theaters, 100 Minutes, Rated R):
I noticed this film was coming out tonight during my trip to my local movie house this morning, so some people will be getting this film tonight. Lucky you.

I had serious issues with The Hangover Part II, namely that it made me pay full price to see The Hangover I all over again. Yes, the action was moved to Thailand, but it still involved a wedding, a night of debauchery, a morning of forgetfulness, and a missing member of a bridal party. Even a lot of the story beats played out the same way.

But all that didn’t matter, because the film made $500 million over its production budget. That was more than enough to bring us this film, which teases itself as being the end of the trilogy. I’m not putting too much stock in that.

Even though the characters are back in Las Vegas, and Ken Jeong and Heather Graham have rejoined the cast, this version doesn’t seem like a second rehashing of the original. And looking at the trailer, there were moments I thought were really funny. But it will probably make a gazillion dollars regardless, so originality would only be the icing on the cake.