Hot Tub Time Machine: Not so hot!

Four friends travel to a ski lodge they used to frequent when they were younger to relive their glory days. But after an alcohol and energy drink fueled night in a hot tub, they discover that they have traveled back to the year 1986.

Hot Tub Time Machine was like most recent gross out comedies. It featured a group of friends that faced a dilemma and had to rely upon one another (thus rediscovering their friendships) to succeed. And while there were some hearty laughs to be had, most of which were supplied with sarcastic bravado by Clark Duke who played Jacob, most of the jokes and pratfalls had that “seen it before” feeling to them. Rob Corddry’s performance as Lou stood out, but only due to the fact that it was so over the top, one either thought he was a comic genius or he took things a tad too far and distracted from the film (which is the way this reviewer felt). There is nothing wrong with unleashing a flurry of f-bombs or being somewhat crude but when a character seems to do things simply for shock value, as Corddry did throughout the movie, then it comes off as trite more so than genius.

One walks into Hot Tub Time Machine expecting to see a silly little comedy. But it needed a few more laughs and a little more class to make it something beyond run of the mill.

Grade: C