Hot Tub Time Machine: Review

The title of Hot Tub Time Machine says all you need to know about this film. It is literally about a hot tub time machine.  When three aging buddies and one's nephew travel to the mountains for a ski weekend everything takes a turn for the worse (or for the better) when they crawl into a hot tub, mix in a lot of alcohol, a man in a bear  costume, Russian Redbull, and a squirrel and wake up in 1986.  Hilarity ensues while they try to find out how to get back to 2010, or decide if they even want to go back.

I was lucky to get to see this film three times before its release date giving me lots of time to ruminate on the film and how it was presented. First off; the cast is amazing, led by John Cusack as a 40-something loser with a crappy job and a pitiful love life, followed by the hilarious antics of Craig Robinson, Clark Duke & the jack-assery of Rob Corddry - all washed-up losers who try to change what their lives have become through their epic trip to the past. Chevy Chase also has a cameo, but it's far from as funny as Chase has proved to be in the past. I was hoping for a role much similar to that of his role on the new television show: Community. But alas - his character, while vital, was actually quite boring.

Now I understand that the film sounds stupid. The first time I heard about this film I was quite sceptical about how it would turn out - but in the long run it was actually hilarious. While I personally don't think it was nearly as good as The Hangover it was still such a funny ride that I didn't mind seeing it 3 times.

I am quite surprised to be saying this BUT Hot Tub Time Machine is actually one of the funniest movies, if not the funniest movie, of 2010.

Original? Hardly. It's like an R-Rated Back to the Future with boobs; even has Crispin Glover doing a cameo and a reference to [Marty] McFly in a scene where two of the group are betting money on a sports game that they know the outcome to. While hardly original writers John Morris & Sean Anders do what they did in Sex Drive and She's Out of My League; take what can potentially just be a raunchy-comedy; and make it an enjoyable film with a fun plot, lots of quotable one-liners, and enjoyable to more than just teenage males, while being able to maintain the raunch.

Hot Tub Time Machine definitely needs to be on your list of movies to see this month!

4 out of 5 stars