Splish, splash, don't be taking this bath
Phil (Crispin Glover) tempts fate. Don't try this at home. (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)
Hot Tub Time Machine
Running time: 93 minutes
MPAA rating: R (harsh profanity, violence, extreme adult situations, blatant nudity, extreme drugs, strong crude humor)
On the Web
Looking for funny gags in "Hot Tub Time Machine"?
From this aisle seat there is one and only one, and it has very little to do with star John Cusack or the three other unfortunate actors who take a dip in dip*@&% comedy.
Crispin Glover, who played George McFly in "Back to the Future" and is currently on screen as the villainous Knave of Hearts opposite Johnny Depp in "Alice in Wonderland," walks away with this clunker of a lowbrow time-travel comedy.
He's Phil, the sometimes one-armed hotel bellhop and chainsaw juggling ice sculptor who serves as the running joke in a murky, generally unfunny muck of sex, drugs and cheap laughs. Glover, a very good comic actor, iconoclast and Hollywood survivor, is the single reason anyone should spend a dime on this bottom-feeder drivel.
For the record, it can now officially be said that Cusack, the skilled actor of "High Fidelity" and "The Ice Harvest," will do anything on screen for a buck. Since he's one of the film's producers, Cusack can't claim he was blindsided by a lousy script. It is a horrible script, he just knew what he was in for all along.
Beginning in present time, four deeply troubled guys (Cusack, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson and Clark Duke) hop into the same hot tub three of them frolicked in "20 years ago" during Winterfest at a ski resort. This time, though, a Russian energy drink gets spilled into the tub's controls.
When the drunk, drugged foursome set dripping feet back on the hotel deck, it's 1986. Drink, drugs, naked babes and maybe, just maybe second chances await.
The problem -- one of many -- is that when they get to 1986, it looks more like the '60s. And I'm guessing director Steve Pink ("Accepted") and the trio of screenwriters (names withheld in case they ever want to work again) were not math majors in college (or high school, or middle school).
The character's keep talking about going back in time 20 years. Oh really? When I subtract 20 from 2010, I get 1990, not 1986. How dumb do they expect the audience for this film to be?
Let's put it this way. Any moviegoer who thought "The Hangover" was a little too highbrow might enjoy this feeble attempt at the lowest of lowbrow humor.
Everyone else, listen up. Steer way clear of this "Hot Tub."
From this aisle seat there is one and only one, and it has very little to do with star John Cusack or the three other unfortunate actors who take a dip in dip*@&% comedy.
Crispin Glover, who played George McFly in "Back to the Future" and is currently on screen as the villainous Knave of Hearts opposite Johnny Depp in "Alice in Wonderland," walks away with this clunker of a lowbrow time-travel comedy.
He's Phil, the sometimes one-armed hotel bellhop and chainsaw juggling ice sculptor who serves as the running joke in a murky, generally unfunny muck of sex, drugs and cheap laughs. Glover, a very good comic actor, iconoclast and Hollywood survivor, is the single reason anyone should spend a dime on this bottom-feeder drivel.
For the record, it can now officially be said that Cusack, the skilled actor of "High Fidelity" and "The Ice Harvest," will do anything on screen for a buck. Since he's one of the film's producers, Cusack can't claim he was blindsided by a lousy script. It is a horrible script, he just knew what he was in for all along.
Beginning in present time, four deeply troubled guys (Cusack, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson and Clark Duke) hop into the same hot tub three of them frolicked in "20 years ago" during Winterfest at a ski resort. This time, though, a Russian energy drink gets spilled into the tub's controls.
When the drunk, drugged foursome set dripping feet back on the hotel deck, it's 1986. Drink, drugs, naked babes and maybe, just maybe second chances await.
The problem -- one of many -- is that when they get to 1986, it looks more like the '60s. And I'm guessing director Steve Pink ("Accepted") and the trio of screenwriters (names withheld in case they ever want to work again) were not math majors in college (or high school, or middle school).
The character's keep talking about going back in time 20 years. Oh really? When I subtract 20 from 2010, I get 1990, not 1986. How dumb do they expect the audience for this film to be?
Let's put it this way. Any moviegoer who thought "The Hangover" was a little too highbrow might enjoy this feeble attempt at the lowest of lowbrow humor.
Everyone else, listen up. Steer way clear of this "Hot Tub."
Comments