Back to normal after their Bangkok escapade, Phil, Stu and Doug (Cooper, Helms and Bartha) worry that Alan (Galifianakis) is refusing to grow up. So they stage an intervention and set off to a desert retreat. En route they're attacked by mobster Marshall (Goodman), who holds Doug hostage while demanding that that they track down his nemesis Chow (Jeong) and recover a fortune in stolen gold bars. What follows is a series of chases and capers as they find Chow, get into trouble in Tijuana and make a return visit to Vegas.

The screenplay is merely a series of set-pieces strung together in a linear fashion by random dialog and under-developed motives, which makes it more heist movie than comedy. Imagine Ocean's Eleven without any laughs. There is no drunken chaos, no actual hangover and nothing remotely amusing aside from a few wacky touches improvised by the actors. In fact, it actually makes us wonder if we ever found these characters funny.

Phillips puts his big budget to use with first-rate production design, cinematography and editing. And scenes are adeptly staged even if they never build to a punchline. The actors find moments that are genuinely endearing. Helms is the standout, with his likably understated panic, while Jeong is at least unpredictably insane and McCarthy provides some sparky flirtation in her silly scenes with Galifianakis. On the other hand, Goodman phones in his performance from the summer home he bought with his fee.

As with the first two episodes, the lazy script relies on cheap, obvious gags, but it's hard to imagine any audience that would find this amusing. Appearances from recurring characters (such as Graham, Tambor and Epps) are thankless. And even the undemanding viewers who funded this saga will be disappointed by the lame plot, lack of laughs and corny sentimentality. Yes, amid the relentless vulgarity, this strains to be a warm bromance, but we truly hope these guys never see each other again. Please.

themes, language, violence, brief nudity

21.May.13