Rated: MA
Running Time: 93 mins
Director: Steve Pink
Starring: John Cusack, Chevy Chase, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, Clarke Duke, Crispin Glover
Release Date: 22nd April 2010
I love a film with a literal title; you know, one that delivers exactly what it promises. “Snakes On A Plane” gave us… well, snakes on a plane. And “Hot Tub Time Machine” is about… I think you can guess.
John Cusack stars as Adam, one of a bunch of mates who head off to their old holiday destination hoping to recreate the fun times of their youth. But when they arrive, Adam, Lou (Rob Corddry), Nick (Craig Robinson) and Adam’s nephew Jacob (Clarke Duke) discover their old stomping ground has declined into a sort of “Shining”-esque dump of a hotel. But the hot tub is still just as inviting, so the boys pile in for a bit of good old fashioned naked male bonding. After a crazy night the foursome wake up to discover they have time travelled back to their teenage selves in the 80’s.
“Hot Tub Time Machine” is definitely not a highbrow film, in fact the comedy is about as lowbrow as you can get. But the infectious energy, great cast and quotable lines make watching this movie a lot of fun.
John Cusack is back in fine form after his disappointing films “2012” and “1408”; it almost feels like we have time travelled back to his charming “High Fidelity” days. Rob Corddry has the lion’s share of gross-out jokes, which include spewing on a squirrel. Yes, you heard me. He spews on a squirrel. That gives you some indication of the level of humour we are talking about!
Crispin Glover has the best running gag of the film, playing a weird one-armed hotel bellboy, and a wide-eyed Chevy Chase has a cameo as the hot tub repair guy, who might be able to explain what is going on, or might just be crazy.
Reviewed by Alicia Malone
The logic of the actual time travel and what happens when they return to the real world doesn’t quite add up, but it doesn’t matter. There are great jokes for children of the 80’s (is there any funnier decade?) and quite a few genuine surprises in there too.
“Hot Tub Time Machine” is a totally gross-out, totally stupid guilty pleasure.
4 out of 5
For a complete guide to what’s worth watching at the cinema, tune into Movie Juice this Saturday night 7:15pm on Movie Extra.
Reviewed by Alicia Malone.
Completely agree! I have only recently started utilizing things like Newsletters and to some extent social media and it’s shown very positive results overall. Good article.