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'Hot Tub Time Machine' Movie Review

About.com Rating 3.5 Star Rating
User Rating 3.5 Star Rating (2 Reviews) Write a review

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Craig Robinson, Clark Duke, Rob Corddry and John Cusack in Hot Tub Time Machine

Craig Robinson, Clark Duke, Rob Corddry and John Cusack think about getting into the 'Hot Tub Time Machine.'

© MGM
With Hot Tub Time Machine, what you expect to see is what you get - and then some. I confess to not having this R-rated comedy on my list of must-see films for 2010. It wasn't even on my list of must-see films for March 2010. The trailer was kind of funny the first time it aired (its appeal lessened with repeated viewings), but it looked like a one-joke concept stretched to 90 minutes. But Hot Tub Time Machine is actually a fast-paced, well-written buddy comedy featuring four actors who completely sell this raunchy, profanity-laden film.

And when I say raunchy, I'm not kidding. Hot Tub Time Machine crams in as many penis jokes and references as there are minutes in its running time. Sex, drugs, '80s rock and roll, nudity, and foul language - Hot Tub Time Machine pushes every joke, every put-down to the limit. It's totally crude, not for younger viewers whatsoever, and will disgust and turn off anyone who isn't into, let's say, Judd Apatow-style comedy at its extreme.

Hot Tub Time Machine is perverse and loaded with scenes that'll make you squirm uncomfortably at just how far director Steve Pink and writers Josh Heald, Sean Anders and John Morris are willing to take a joke. But that said, if you like your comedy completely depraved and you can tolerate reliving or, for those of you too young to have experienced it in person, being introduced to one of the worst decades for fashion, hair, makeup and music, then Hot Tub Time Machine has enough genuinely funny moments to make it worth checking out.

The Story

John Cusack, Rob Corddry and Craig Robinson star as longtime buddies who've grown apart as adults. Though they barely talk anymore, they're drawn back together in response to Lou's (Corddry) suicide attempt. In order to reconnect and get Lou away from his problems, the guys take off for a weekend trip to a mountain resort they remember from their teen years. And they drag along Jacob (Clark Duke), Adam's (Cusack) nephew, to be the butt of every video game/nerd/virgin joke they can think up.

Crispin Glover shows off his ice-carving skills in 'Hot Tub Time Machine.'

Crispin Glover shows off his ice-carving skills in 'Hot Tub Time Machine.'

© MGM
The resort used to be the place to party, but now it's nearly deserted and in total disrepair. Still, they try to make the best of it by playing drinking games and hopping into the hot tub with lots of booze. The next thing they know, it's morning, they're all hung over, and something's off about the people at the ski resort. Everyone's wearing neon colors, leg warmers, and has big hair, the music is coming from cassettes, and Poison's playing at the club... The hot tub was a time machine (didn't see that one coming, did you?) and these guys are stuck in the '80s.

One look in the mirror reveals that while they're still in their late 30s/early 40s on the inside, everyone else sees them as they were when they were in high school. Chevy Chase appears to warn them about the butterfly effect - they have to spend the night making sure they don't do anything they didn't do when they were there in 1986 - and of course that leads to lots of debauchery, inappropriate activities, and Jacob finding out that his mom did drugs and was pretty much a slut in high school.

While Jacob tries to be the voice of reason, tries to keep these guys in line, Lou, Adam, and Nick (Robinson) go about reliving what they remembered to be one of the best weekend's of their high school careers.

The Acting

Hot Tub Time Machine is like putting John Cusack in a time machine and returning him to the youthful days of his rowdy but heartfelt comedies. There's even a passing reference to Cusack's 1985 film Better Off Dead which got the biggest laugh from me out of everything in Hot Tub Time Machine. Oddly enough, the preview audience I saw it with either didn't get it or didn't think it was all that funny...

I haven't been a fan of a lot of Cusack's recent choices, but this one shows he's still got it. Along with Cusack, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson and Clark Duke make for a formidable comedy team. I bought these guys as friends - except for odd man out Duke - and the total abandon to which they gave themselves over to the material definitely made what could have been a train wreck into something pretty entertaining.

Without giving too much away, the foursome is upstaged by an unlikely source. Crispin Glover pops in and out of the film as a bellhop who worked at the resort in the '80s and is still there carting around luggage in 2010. There's a running gag involving one of Glover's body parts that's just hysterical.

Clark Duke, Craig Robinson, John Cusack and Rob Corddry in 'Hot Tub Time Machine.'

Clark Duke, Craig Robinson, John Cusack and Rob Corddry in 'Hot Tub Time Machine.'

© MGM

The Bottom Line

Hot Tub Time Machine is going to offend anyone who wanders into a screening not fully aware of what they're getting into. It's an over-the-top, no holds barred, vulgar comedy - with a guy in a bear suit and a random squirrel thrown in for good measure. It also reminded me just much I hate the styles from the '80s. Please don't let those fashion trends ever, ever come back. However, despite my lack of affection for anything '80s, Hot Tub Time Machine made me laugh more than pretty much anything else released this year. Not every joke worked, and I could have done without Chevy Chase's weird character, but it's actually smarter than it appears and even has a little bit of heart, albeit a heart buried beneath a ton of penis jokes.

GRADE: B

Hot Tub Time Machine was directed by Steve Pink and is rated R for strong crude and sexual content, nudity, drug use and pervasive language.

Theatrical Release: March 26, 2010

Disclosure: This review is based on a screening provided by the studio. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.

User Reviews

 3 out of 5
Hot Tub Time Machine, Member willyt2

Cell phones the size of car batteries. Shoulder pads on everything. Polka dots. Leg warmers. Big hair. ""Duran Duran."" ""The Go Go's."" Cassette Tapes. Sony Walkmen. Pop Rocks. Rubik's Cubes. The San Francisco 49ers, Joe Montana can eat my shorts. The Bengals should've won both of those games. ""Fast Times at Ridgemont High."" ""The Breakfast Club."" ""Sixteen Candles."" ""Weird Science."" ""Back to the Future."" All of this stuff is so yesterday...GAG ME WITH A SPOON! John Cusack stars in ""Hot Tub Machine"" as he plays a character going through a mid-life crisis and has his love life in the dumps. His three friends are also bored with their adult lives so the four guys decide to take a trip to an old ski resort that they used to hang out at when they were younger. As they're prepared to party the night on they decide hop in the Jacuzzi and get hammered. They wake up in 1986 where they hear one guy say, ""I'm skiing and I'm calling you from my CELL PHONE!"" The movie has some great supporting actors. Lyndsey Fonseca is amusing as Cusack's girlfriend. With her party girl personality you can tell that she really has fun with her character. Chevy Chase may look a lot different on the outside since ""Vacation"" but he is hilarious as the maintenance guy and still finds that funny, innocent Clark Griswold inside of him that we all know love. And Crispin Glover (George McFly) makes a hysterical cameo as the bellhop. The writers put in a running joke with him that lasts throughout the whole movie and it really works. Individually, all of the actors are funny. Craig Robinson is the best out of the four main actors here. He brings a lot of personality to the screen. I was laughing out loud when he looked directly at the audience and said, ""It must be some kina...hot tub timachine."" All of the other actors, including John Cusack, are good, just not as good. I'm not a fan of some of the writing. The majority of the jokes are dirty. It's ok to have one here and there but it crosses the line after the fifth time. The jokes are only funny when the actors make them work. The makers of the film try to make the plot seem too much like the 2009 summer hit, ""The Hangover."" This proves that you need the best chemistry you can get when it comes to actors and these four just don't have it. Also, the special-effects are horrible and look like they came from Nickelodeon. There's really not much else to say about this movie. It's not terrible but it's not good. The director could've done a better job exploring the feel of the 80s rather than just showing what people wore and the accessories back then. I think if I was living in that decade I would've enjoyed the film a lot more. But still, in my opinion, I recommend you wait to rent ""Hot Tub Time Machine.""

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