THE HANGOVER PART II (Rated R)

Director Todd Phillips’ followup to his blockbuster comedy film “The Hangover” is just about as good as it gets. For one thing, the successful formula remains the same in “The Hangover Part II.”

The setting has changed from the tawdry glitz of Las Vegas to the dingy back alleys of Bangkok. But the story of regular guys looking to have a good time remains the same.

As we well know, these regular guys have a knack for ending up in serious trouble after a hard night of debauchery, public drunkenness and other unspeakable acts.

The usual suspects travel to exotic Thailand for the wedding of their pal Stu (Ed Helms), the nerdy, excitable dentist, who is marrying the lovely Lauren (Jamie Chung) in her homeland.

Stu, you may recall, was previously married briefly to a hooker during their misadventures in Vegas. But this time, he has found true love and doesn’t want to mess it up.

The fact that Lauren’s father, a physician, strongly disapproves of this union is a source of great amusement. His toasts at the rehearsal dinner snidely disparage Stu’s career and equate his personality to that of soggy white rice.

Not wanting to lose any more teeth, Stu had proposed, before the overseas trip, a safe, subdued pre-wedding brunch, with pancakes, coffee and no alcohol, at the local IHOP.

His pals, Phil (Bradley Cooper), the smooth talker, and Doug (Justin Bartha), the prospective groom during the ill-fated Vegas trip, want a real bachelor party.

Joining the Wolfpack for the trip to Thailand is Doug’s brother-in-law Alan (Zach Galifianakis), the foolish nitwit and walking man-child disaster who constantly wreaks havoc and offends with his tactless remarks.

As fate would have it, the four guys who ended up in so much trouble in Sin City are headed unexpectedly for more of the same in the sinful city of Bangkok.

Once at the beautiful beach resort in Thailand, Phil rekindles the idea of some form of a bachelor party, at least one that might avoid the problems that come from unwittingly ingesting roofies.

With the blessing of Stu’s future bride Lauren, the boys gather around a campfire on the beach for one drink from unsealed beer bottles, while bringing along Lauren’s younger brother Teddy (Mason Lee), a teenage prodigy and gifted pre-med student.

Next thing you know, Stu, Phil and Alan wake up in a stupor in a sleazy, dingy Bangkok hotel room. Teddy is missing, but apparently his finger, complete with a school ring, is found floating in an ice bucket.

What’s more, Stu has a raw, fresh tattoo on his face that resembles the one adorning Mike Tyson. Alan’s head is now shaved. A chain-smoking Capuchin monkey runs loose in the bathroom.

Just like the original “Hangover,” the dazed bachelor party celebrants must piece together clues of their night of revelry to not only find out what happened, but to locate the missing Teddy.

What comes next is an adventure through the seedy underbelly of Bangkok, including unsavory encounters with thugs, Russian mafia, a Buddhist monk and pole dancers of dubious sexuality.

The gangster Mr. Chow (Ken Jeong) has also returned, losing none of his swagger as he goes up against crime lord Kingsley (Paul Giamatti), who in turn threatens the Wolfpack for the delivery of bank account numbers.

“The Hangover Part II” is rated R for its “pervasive language, strong sexual content including graphic nudity, drug use and brief violent images.”

By all accounts, the MPAA seems to have gone easy on a film that is filled with raunchiness and plenty of gratuitous sexual images and depraved humor.

But, hey, “The Hangover” is all about pushing the boundaries of good taste in pursuit of outrageous laughs. If you loved the original, you will feel the same about this one.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

The performance will start at 5:30 p.m. and continue to as late as 8:30 p.m. at Williams' Silk's Bar & Grill.

Silk's Bar & Grill is located at 14825 Lakeshore Drive, Clearlake.

Call 707-995-7455 to reserve a table, as seating is limited.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (Rated PG-13)

If there is a movie franchise that is basically immune to critical reviews or even the slightest measure of disapproval, it must be the elaborate Jerry Bruckheimer production that is based on a popular theme park attraction.

“Pirates of the Caribbean,” now delivering its fourth installment in “On Stranger Tides,” is in that rarefied atmosphere of successful franchise films spawned by the likes of James Bond and Indiana Jones.

With Johnny Depp’s adept swashbuckling heroics, his role of fearless, even reckless Captain Jack Sparrow seems, it would appear, comfortably similar in many respects to Harrison Ford’s earnest whip-cracking adventurer.

Though little can be said to derail the inevitable triumph of “On Stranger Tides” at the box office, it should be noted out that even this improved sequel is no match for the original.

On the other hand, it sure beats “Dead Man’s Chest” and “At World’s End,” the second and third installments, respectively, that nearly capsized the franchise.

With Orlando Bloom’s Will Turner and Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth Swann now gone from the storyline, Johnny Depp’s iconic renegade seafarer, gussied up with his usual headscarf and black eyeliner, is the alluring mainstay.

“On Stranger Tides” also benefits from being much less ponderous and convoluted in plot than the last two chapters, to the point that it is easier to understand where the story is going.

But even a clearer plot does not completely eliminate the seemingly unavoidable drift into uncharted waters, where pirate battles often rage for no discernible reasons.

What is so inescapable in this franchise is that Captain Sparrow constantly finds himself squarely in the middle of problematic situations which require his deft extraction from near death.

Escaping the authorities in London, Jack reluctantly falls in with his old flame Angelica (Penelope Cruz), but it proves to be a costly decision.

Captain Sparrow is shanghaied aboard the Queen Anne’s Revenge, the ship of the truly legendary and villainous pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane), who apparently is Angelica’s father.

Blackbeard’s crew consists of a strange mix of dodgy pirates and ruthless zombies, with Sparrow involuntarily recruited to lead them to the Fountain of Youth.

Meanwhile, the indestructible Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) is hunting for the Black Pearl, the Fountain of Youth and anything else that engages Sparrow in a similar quest.

The whole combative zombie thing has been done before, but a new twist this time is the appearance of mermaids who are far removed from the classical Disney vision of cheery, agreeable sea creatures.

With the notable exception of Syrena (Astrid Berges-Frisbey), the seductive mermaids are a deadly bunch, but their presence adds a supernatural element more inviting than the zombies.

The race to find the fabled fountain with restorative powers is not the best foundation for a stirring adventure, particularly when the swordfights take on an overly repetitive feeling.

But this being a Jerry Bruckheimer production, the enormously massive scale of production delivers an unmistakably heightened sense of adventure on the high seas.

Even when the storyline or the action gets a bit wobbly, the reassuring presence of Depp’s fey pirate, spouting his usual pithy lines, makes it all enjoyably worthwhile.

“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” at times aimless and adrift, still manages to maintain its crowd-pleasing frivolity and sense of fun.

DVD RELEASE UPDATE

We hardly notice anything about Canada until a big talent emerges like Celine Dion or John Candy. OK, I’d rather think about the late great comedian.

In any case, Canada remains so far under the radar that even the popular CBS TV series “Flashpoint,” made in the Great White North, is a steady, reliable show that trundles along without much fanfare.

Thus, it might surprise you to know that “Flashpoint: The Third Season” is being released on DVD.

“Flashpoint” is a drama that depicts the emotional journey into the tough, risk-filled lives of a group of cops in the Strategic Response Unit (inspired by Toronto’s Emergency Task Force).

It’s a unique unit that rescues hostages, busts gangs, defuses bombs, climbs the sides of buildings and talks down suicidal teens. And Spider-Man is nowhere in sight.

However, Enrico Colantoni stars as the lead negotiator, and in this third season, he’s investigated after a shooting spree at a museum.

Members of the SRU team include David Paetkau, Amy Jo Johnson and Hugh Dillon. They are all trained to get inside the suspect’s head to diffuse dangerous situations and to try to save lives.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

The event will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

There will be finger food, music, local wine and the chance to meet local artists.

New work will be introduced by local artists include Bruce Vandraiss, colored pencil; Terry Durnil, pastels; Wanda Quitiquit, turn-of-the-century Pomo design handpainted gourds; Bill Rose, stained glass, fused glass, carved ostrich, emu, duck and rhea eggs.

Artists currently on display at the gallery include Gary Bosman, unique one-of-a-kind presentations made of recycled materials, silver card holders, desk sets of deer antlers and more; Marilyn Crayton, handpainted gourds; Lana Dooleage, handcrafted silver jewelry; John Eells, acrylic paintings; Meredith Gambrel, local original landscapes and barnyard scenes in oil; landscapes of Lake County painted on location by the Pleine Air Artists Group; Carmen Fox-Ross, photography; Paula Strother, original acrylics; Amy Heppen, figurative art; Diane Constable, acrylic; Linda Richmond, acrylic/collage; and Joe Borg, oil landscapes.

The Main Street Art Gallery is located at 325 N. Main St., Lakeport, telephone 707-263-6658.

Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

Cathy Smith Bowers was recently appointed poet laureate of South Carolina, and I want to celebrate her appointment by showing you one of her lovely poems, a peaceful poem about a peaceful thing.

Peace Lilies

I collect them now, it seems. Like

sea-shells or old

thimbles. One for

Father. One for

Mother. Two for my sweet brothers.

Odd how little

they require of

me. Unlike the

ones they were sent in memory

of. No sudden

shrilling of the

phone. No harried

midnight flights. Only a little

water now and

then. Scant food and

light. See how I’ve

brought them all together here in

this shaded space

beyond the stairs.

Even when they

thirst, they summon me with nothing

more than a soft,

indifferent furl-

ing of their leaves.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2004 by Cathy Smith Bowers, whose most recent book of poetry is The Candle I Hold Up to See You, Iris Press, 2009. Poem reprinted from A Book of Minutes, Iris Press, 2004, by permission of Cathy Smith Bowers and the publisher. Introduction copyright 2011 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Reggae will come to Lakeport in June.

Konocti Vista Casino's showroom will host the concert featuring Dubtonic Kru, Stevie Culture and Johnny Cool on Thursday, June 9, beginning at 9 p.m. and running until 1 a.m. Friday, June 10.

All ages are welcome.

Tickets cost $10 for adults, $5 for children.

Event organizers also are planning to have a DJ and some vendors.

For more about Dubtonic Kru visit http://www.dubtonickru.com/fr_dubmusic.cfm .

Konocti Vista Casino is located at 2755 Mission Rancheria Road, Lakeport.