Fancy another Hangover? After the last week of festive activities, probably not. But, if you’re a glutton for punishment….
While not the most original story around (Stag night in Vegas) Last Vegas does put a slightly different twist on things, by putting a bunch of pensioners in the middle of Sin City as the celebrate an old friend who is getting married to “an infant”. Michael Douglas is the groom to be and is joined by Kevin Kline, Morgan Freeman and reluctantly, Robert De Niro. The childhood friends have gone their separate ways in life, but have a reunion of sorts and live up the good life in Vegas, complete with a side plot for each of them. From Kline’s hall pass to De Niro’s beef with Douglas, theres a bit going on here, and to be fair, it all mixes together quite well as the subplots intertwine rather nicely.
While Last Vegas pitches itself as a comedy, don’t expect too many laughs here. While a number of scenes may raise a smirk or two from your gorgeous face, don’t expect to start choking on the popcorn or snorting like a pig. The lack of laughs isn’t really down to the cast, as we all know, they can do comedy. Its more the story, which doesn’t really lend itself to many laughs. The comedic undertones seemed tacked on alot of the time, and I wonder would this have been far better pitching itself as something else entirely. Because the “comedy” on display is nothing but non stop pensioner clichés. They’re not funny the first time, so by the tenth time, its rather tedious.
However, once you get through the strained comedy, Last Vegas has a bubbling undercurrent of wearing its heart on its sleeve. Its in the last quarter where things start picking up and it will melt the coldest of hearts. At least for a short time, before they freeze back up again. Its when you see this side of the movie, that you think its got far more going for it as something more touching, instead of the forced and clichéd attempts at humour.
While the cast have amazing heritage, none of them really break a sweat here. That said, they have a genuine good chemistry on screen together. All are watchable, especially Kline and Douglas, but its Mary Steenburgen who leads the way here. Looking like the only one who broke a sweat, she is incredibly sweet and utterly convincing.
Last Vegas isn’t necessarily a bad movie. It just tries too hard to be something; that at its heart, it really isn’t. And while it is bearable and watchable, like most bachelor parties, you won’t remember much of this in a few days time!
