Is ‘The Hangover’ the Funniest Film of the Year?

With Bruno coming out later this summer, and then The Road in the fall, probably not. But last night I had the chance to catch an advanced screening of The Hangover, about three groomsmen who lose the groom after a drunken night in Vegas, and it played to an ovation from a delirious crowd. Here are five reasons why The Hangover will be this summer's sleeper hit:

1. Todd Phillips is back: After hitting it big (and making Will Ferrell a movie star) with the frat-tastic Old School, Phillips tried to mine similar comedy gold with movies like Starsky & Hutch and School for Scoundrels. Hutch was a forgettable effort that rode its stars to decent box office, and Scoundrels was the kind of unfunny misfire that puts careers on ice (right, Jon Heder?). But in The Hangover, Phillips doesn't hold back, playing 9/11 and the Holocaust for laughs, and coaxing breakout performances from his three leads. It's no wonder he's already been signed to a sequel. Which brings us to ...

2. Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, and Bradley Cooper are awesome: I would like to shake the hand of the person who cast this film. It was probably you, Todd Phillips, but shout-outs go to Melissa Kostenbauder and everyone else IMDb lists in the casting department. The chemistry between these three is potent and a joy to watch—like Clooney, Pitt, and Damon ditching the whole boring suave schtick and wigging out on Vicks inhaler. After stealing all of his scenes as the bad guy in Wedding Crashers, Bradley Cooper unfocused his career path by playing supporting parts on TV shows and ensemble pieces. This should correct course. Ed Helms plays a version of the same character he plays on The Office, except now he gets to say “fuck” a lot. One of the movie’s high points has him behind a piano. But really, this movie belongs to one man ...

3. Zach Galifianakis is really, really awesome: Cult comedy aficionados are already aware of Galifianakis’ twisted genius from his disturbing work with Tim and Eric and his amazingly weird web show Between Two Ferns. But with his creepy, lovable, and borderline psychotic performance in the film, he’ll become a household name—Jack Black with demons. During the screening, you could feel a collective “Who is this guy?” and “How have I never heard of him before?” buzzing around the audience. That won’t be happening anymore.

4. Ken Jeong as Mr. Chow: SPOILER ALERT: I will not spoil that much. Only to say that Ken Jeong, the real-life doctor who broke out as the fake doctor in Knocked Up, along with Galifianakis, lifts this movie into realms of the absurd. We see his penis, and that’s the least extreme part about his performance.

5. The closing credits: I can’t spoil these, but you’ll want to stick around after the screen cuts to black. Without a doubt, the cast had much more fun shooting the closing credits sequence than they did the entire film. It includes moments you literally will not believe. So good they are, they give the film new context. You won’t want them to end, and when they finally do, you’ll feel an endless void of despair within. Fill it with alcohol, because that’s another thing—this movie will make you want to party, blackout stylez.