“How ’bout that ride in? Guess that’s why they call it Sin City. You guys might not know this, but I consider myself a bit of a loner. I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolf pack. But when my sister brought Doug home, I knew he was one of my own. And my wolf pack… it grew by one. So there… there were two of us in the wolf pack… I was alone first in the pack, and then Doug joined in later. And six months ago, when Doug introduced me to you guys, I thought, “Wait a second, could it be?” And now I know for sure, I just added two more guys to my wolf pack. Four of us wolves, running around the desert together, in Las Vegas, looking for strippers and cocaine. So tonight, I make a toast!”

How could anyone forget Alan’s epic speech from “The Hangover?” Don’t lie – either you’ve quoted it, or your friends have quoted it, or your parents have quoted it (awkward?), or your kids have quoted it…. or you’ve always wanted to. Two years after its release, “The Hangover” is still making people laugh. Interesting, given that a real hangover is seldom a laughing matter.

I’ve “hung around”, let my hair “hang down”, and been “hung up” on but I have never been hungover. God knows with how easily dehydrate and how easily I (still) forget to drink at least one glass of water every day, that I don’t need any more fatigue, nausea, and dizziness in my life. The nerd in me went looking for a formal definition:

“Hangover:  The disagreeable physical after effects of drunkenness, such as a headache or stomach disorder, usually felt several hours after cessation of drinking.” – Dictionary.com

From what I’ve heard, having a hangover is not the most pleasant feeling; that said, I’ve also heard it described as “proof of a good time” and “a necessary evil of having a social life.” By those definitions, I’m boring with no friends. Ok, so maybe that’s harsh, but it is amazing how accepted hangovers are, which brings me back to the media. “The Hangover” and “The Hangover Part II” (sequel) were box office hits, grossing $45mil and $86mil on their opening weekends respectively (mtv.com/news… source cited – that one’s for you, college professors). I’ve seen them given as Christmas gifts, watched by crowds in college dorm rooms, and placed lovingly alongside a DVD collection of Disney-Pixar movies.

So why do we love “hangovers” so much? Well, for starters, the movies are hilarious, but for me there’s another reason: living vicariously through Alan, Stu, Doug, and Phil. I hate the thought of getting so drunk that I forget things. I never want to steal one of Tyson’s tigers or a squad car and I have enough trouble sleeping in a dorm room, much less on a mattress on the roof of a Vegas hotel. I’d never wish those things on my friends either. If and when my friends have a bit too much to drink, my number one priority is to keep them safe, not to laugh at their stupidity (but that may come the following morning…). That said, all of the above are entertaining to watch on the big screen. Weird, yes, but the media is well aware of the fact and uses it to their advantage. Not to say we should stop watching movies – I could go for a 4th watching of “The Hangover” about now…

My point is, it’s interesting how something so negative can receive such a positive response when introduced in cinematic form. Somehow it’s more removed – less threatening even. We walk out of the theater (in a straight line) with no negative side effects, except for maybe abs sore from laughing. So bring on “The Hangover”, but leave the booze at home.