Movie Review - "Hot Tub Time Machine"

HOT TUB TIME MACHINE

DIRECTED BY: Steve Pink (Accepted)

STARRING: John Cusack (Say Anything), Craig Robinson (The Office), Chevy Chase (Caddyshack)

The title itself, "Hot Tub Time Machine", should imply something ludicrous, wild, and stupidly hilarious. Well, the movie is and it isn't. The plot surrounds three old friends, who've been distant for some time. Adam (Cusack) is a lonely and depressed chap just dumped by his girlfriend. His 20-year-old nephew, Jacob (played in a completely forgettable performance by Clark Duke), lives with him and is the definition of a technology nerd, almost never leaving the house. Nick (Robinson) is a bored loser who works at an upscale animal hospital. And finally there's the wild Lou, who recently attempted suicide and is taken by the three boys to an old ski resort that left them with many fond memories from the 80's. They're expecting to find the glorious place they left behind so many years ago, but are shocked to find a deadbeat lodge barely filled with old people and rugged construction. But low and behold, out swings their back door to reveal a sparkling hot tub that of course, transports the 4 protagonists back to 1986. "It must be some kinda...hot tub time machine," says Robinson, followed by a serious stare at the camera. It's THIS kind of line, and the glowy, fantasy-like revealing of the hot tub, that I was expecting. If only it lasted.

We eventually meet Chevy Chase's character who was thrown in because the writer couldn't find a better way to explain the whole you-have-to-be-back-by-this-time-don't-change-anything scenario, and the boys are off to replicate history before returning to the tub. I'm going to be honest: this. Does. Not. Work. Watching the guys go around trying to duplicate previous acts just...isn't fun. These are the 80's, man! This is a movie about a friggin' hot tub time machine! So why aren't there more than just a few scattered laughs? Why did the writer choose such a boring filler? I don't know. But it's disappointing.

There's one more problem I had with the film: the 4 central characters. They're not interesting. At all. It's obvious they're trying to recreate the chemistry and personalities of the characters from last summer's hilarious hit "The Hangover", and they just don't. Cusack plays the straight man of course, but how does the straight man work if his comic relief aren't that funny? Clark Duke plays the nephew, one of the most annoying movie characters to date. Rob Corddry plays the Zach Galifanakis (Alan from The Hangover) member of the crew, a wild weirdo spitting out lines like "It's called male-bonding...haven't you even seen Wild Hogs?" If only he was that funny. He's not BAD, he's just...mediocre. The only funny one of the group is The Office's Craig Robinson, walking the fine line of absurdity without going to far over. If only he had better material to work with.

Now, I sound like I'm bashing this film, which is not what I intended to do. Because believe it or not from my previous comments, but I actually did enjoy watching it, as much of a letdown as it may be. Yes, the characters are, for the most part, boring. Yes, the script does take a lot of wrong turns when it could so easily have made right ones. And these things are unfortunate. But you can't deny the occasional sparkle; there are definitely moments where the movie takes off, such as Craig Robinson taking the stage to perform a Black Eyed Peas song, and the resolution of the film is as good as it could be. But for a movie called "Hot Tub Time Machine", it should have delivered much more ridiculous implausibility and fun; instead we get a series of gags that are merely amusing. It's worth sitting down with some friends to enjoy for 2 hours, but just barely. Time is money, and these guys especially should have known that.

C+