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Out on DVD this week is the low budget comedy based on Tucker Max’s book of the same name.  Right up front we have to confront the Tucker Max equation.  As someone familiar with his work and website, I must profess that I have always thought his tales were mostly bullshit, despite the fact he maintains them as factually accurate.  Second on th list of Max considerations are the too numerous counts of him being called a misogynist or what have you.  To this I respond – who gives a shit?  So all of this out of the way, let’s talk about this movie.

IHTSBIH has too long of a title and follows a group of three friends: Tucker, Drew, and Dave.  Dave is engaged to be married and Tucker has taken it upon himself to lead the group to a far-away strip club for his bachelor party, bringing a somewhat reluctant Dave who lies to his fiance about his future whereabouts, and the recently heart broken Drew, who holds a grudge against all humans with a vagina.  What follows is obviously a night of debauchery, drinking, midget fucking, and fecal excreting.

I can’t totally speak to the final quality of the film as I received a DVD-R Screener of the film, not the final product.  This disc is obviously of a lower quality than the final release will be, but that being said – the film does look low budget.  Almost assuredly film on video, the film has all the flaws associated with that.  I’m sure the actual DVD will look better but retain some of the amateurish elements.

Acting wise, no one is all that terrible, despite what other reviews you may read that are most likely biased against Tucker Max and no the movie.  In fact, there is even a great performance in here from Jesse Bradford.  His character is somewhat monotonous – but that’s the character, not  the actor.  His self and female loathing is hilarious and he delivers virtually all of the best lines of the movie.  In fact, he has just as much screen time as the other characters and has the most realistic and believable character arc.  He is the most entertaining and sincere of them all.  Without that performance, I think the movie would have failed completely.

As one would expect, nay, demand, from a movie from this source material, we get some raunchy bits.  Max and Drew are both overtly sexist in their jokes, the infamous shitting across the hotel lobby bit is present, and there are plenty of boobs and some sex scenes with Bridget the Midget, the Midget Pornstar.  Google that on your own time.

The movie spends most of its run time creating chaos and making jokes.  The resolution happens fairly quickly towards the end.  Tucker’s shenanigans strain his relationship with Dan to the point of him being disinvited from the wedding.  This forces somewhat of a change in Tucker and he learns to also think of others, rather than just always thinking about himself.

While most assuredly not a perfect movie, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell delivers plenty of boobs and a more than a few outrageous laughs, mostly thanks to to Jesse Bradford’s hilarious performance and his ode to to the “pancakewhich” aka the McGriddle.  I’d say this one is definitely a rental for anyone who enjoys raunchy comedies – just don’t expect the world from it and you’ll have a good time.