I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell (2009)

Awesome Movie

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

OK, here's my review of this movie.The book is a masterpiece. It's not a masterpiece because it's well to written but because it is a ironic view on our society and reality today. Yes, it's kind of hard to accept everything that Tucker Max writes there but in some circumstances, it's true. A bitter pill to swallow.This is why I've read the book about three years ago. I don't remember the underlying storyline, if any, as I've read about one story at a time but I've enjoyed it. It was a crude "take no prisoner" view on how being a borderline sociopath actually works in a social and economic environment.Tucker in his book is more than a player. He is a very smart individual (yes, after I've read it, I've Googled up "Prisoner's Dilemma" just out of curiosity) with little regard for his safety, the safety of his friends and with about no moral compass. A large section of the book deals with the idea of "I've thought once in love and stuff like that. Now I don't anymore". And as I was saying, the book is great because it's not just funny but it deals with a lot of the social topics not covered by other people.Now the movie …I've started reading the book again and I'm at page ~100. I don't remember the storyline to be in there but I guess there are several stories inspired. The characters are relatively well designed (the frustrated-cheated-computer-genius is especially well done) and they are partially believable. It is NOT the best acting in the world but it's not made out of amateurs either. The story is … kind of stupid. There were so many stories to use, they've picked one which could be made politically correct. This is maybe the biggest flaw with the movie. They made it too politically correct in the line of "bad guy gets good results - bad guy displays sociopathic behaviors (which was not really the case in the book) and loses friends - bad guy scores again but karma pays back - bad guy has a change of heart". Again, I haven't read the book entirely again so this may be accurate to the book but so far, it's not.To sum this up and get to sleep …The good: * Some actually good lessons (If you don't get rid of this self- defeating beliefs, your life will remain the same). * Decent or normal acting. I'm not comparing this with The Count of Monte Cristo. I'm comparing it with most similar flicks. * Based on a brilliant book and it captured some of it's appeal.The bad: * It's not funny. The original stories made you laugh every two paragraphs. I don't know if it's because of the acting but it's simply not funny and I haven't caught myself laughing except the opening scene. * Politically correct. The lesson in the book was in the line of "the social contract is an illusion most of the time and you are free to make your own choices as long as you are ready to pay the price". The lesson here? Don't be egotistical and appreciate your friends. * The nudity was … stupid. A large part of the movie presents nudity but it doesn't attract your attention in any way whatsoever. * This guy was brilliant and this is the way why he got away with most of what he did. But here, with the exception of a 20 sec section, he appears an average joe.The ugly: * The final story, the one in the hotel where he makes a mess is simply gross, even for a guy. There are close shots of his crapping his pants, lacking a better language and even close-ups. I don't want to see such thing and I don't know what it accomplished by it. Final verdict?Lost time. It simply feels like a way to make some money over a very controversial book. However, they failed to capture the entire context and it's not funny nor educative nor thought provoking.

I have no idea what compelled me to watch this movie, or finish it for that matter. usually a fan of Jesse Bradford, but this time around his acting is horrible and comes off as forced and unenthusiastic. it may be the writing, but it's almost as if it is painful for him to play this role. his chauvinistic and downright obnoxious comments make you wonder how this guy even had a girlfriend, let alone any friends. he's like the Debbie downer of the group. he proceeds to tall crap to the stripper and then falls in love w her?! and the fiancé, Keri Lynn Pratt is also horrible and a sad excuse for an actress. shes not even the least bit pretty so idk why or how she got this role. probably slept w Tucker to get it bc she cannot act. her voice is nasally and high pitched which makes it AND her beyond annoying. reminds me of a snotty 6 yr old little whiny brat. it's any wonder why she hasn't had any real major roles in a decent film!! the bathroom scene near the end is vulgar and makes you sick to your stomach. it is truly gag worthy. if Tucker max really thought this film would be bigger & better than the hangover then he is absolutely delusional, thus making it easy for one to see how he thought that this would be a hit in any capacity-he is just downright delusional. horrible storyline, god awful "acting" and just a crude waste of your time.

Let me present this hypothetical scenario to you:You and your buddies get in the car and drive to the nearest Middle School. Once there go up to the fattest or ugliest little girl you can find and make fun of her till she runs away crying. Continue doing this till the principal calls the police, then key a few cars and do a donut in the front lawn before speeding away. Then you all go to a local bar and recount your experiences, loudly and with great hilarity, till you're totally bombed.Sound like a fun way to kill an evening? If so then you're this movie's target audience and may enjoy it. For the rest of us 'lame-ass losers' who would find such behavior appalling, just walk away and pretend you never saw it.

here'e the thing - the movie is billed as a comedy but actually felt a bit like a horror movie. the male characters, are, well, very creepy. now, i've read tucker max material years ago on the web. it was funny stuff. but this movie...it seemed like these guys were getting ready to kidnap and rape a girl for a protracted period of time before killing her. they were downright threatening and brutal to the various females they met. i got as far as the bar/roadtrip scene before i just had to turn it off.if this were rewritten as a horror movie, about some psychos looking to brutalize a college girl, i would have stuck around. but the movie is trying to get me to like these protagonists, and i just can't do that.also, it was totally unfunny. not a real joke or setup in the whole thing.