So Mr. Chase, is my hot tub time machine fixed?
I've got somewhen to be.
You're good to go.
Excellent, I'll just grab my hoverboard, and we can get back to the future.
By the way, how'd you get the Jacuzzi working again?
Some sort of sticky liquid got into the crossover housing.
I don't know.
Oh seriously Chevy?
That's disgusting.
Worked out for you and the boys, though.
Great.
So I stole plutonium from the Libyans for nothing.
All I'm saying is, whatever your poison, I wouldn't tub without it.
Well, I gotta get going then, because this is Movie Night!
Hello and welcome to Movie Night, in-depth reviews in less than five minutes.
I'm your host, Jonathan Paula.
For the third time on the show we're taking a look at time travel movies, specifically
we'll focus on five newer and less known titles from this interesting sub-genre.
We begin with "Primer".
This science fiction drama film won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival,
and eventually scored $424,000 at the box office following a limited release in October
of that year.
On a minuscule budget of only $7,000 former engineer and mathematics graduate Shane Curruth
basically created this entire picture by himself, serving as director, producer, writer, actor,
composer, and editor.
So let that be a lesson to aspiring filmmakers: if you have a dream, and enough money to buy
a used Toyota Corolla, you really can make a feature film all by yourself.
The PG-13 rated plot follows Carruth and David Sullivan as two fledging entrepreneurs who
inadvertently build a time machine in their garage, and begin experimenting with it.
Interestingly though, the phrases "time travel" and "time machine" are never used once in
the complicated script, which has not been simplified at all for audiences.
In a medium saturated with dumbed-down exposition, this intelligent approach is certainly commendable,
but it can also be frustrating.
The audience is largely kept in the dark as we watch the brainy protagonists solve their
scientific dilemmas.
Their performances are serviceable for the technical aspects, but when it comes to the
picture's few dramatic moments, it's obvious they're amateurs.
Although "Primer" is a very short 77-minutes, the material is so dense it feels like a much
longer production.
There's no fat on this story, everything has been trimmed down to the bare essentials of
storytelling.
And for better or worse: there's absolutely zero backstory or character development, as
the narrative begins without an introduction as to who these people are, or what they're
doing.
The audience is given no clue as to whether they're building a transporter or a toaster
oven.
Eventually though, we see they've constructed a pair of refrigerator sized boxes that allow
its occupants real time backwards movement through the fourth dimension.
It's extremely fascinating to see how these characters analytically use this power in
incrementally more courageous amounts; first to make modest income on the stock market,
and later to stop a violent attack.
Remarking on paradoxical consequences, Carruth questions his friend, "What's worse, thinking
you're being paranoid or knowing you should be?"
Often bathed in overly orange hues, the visuals here are decidedly plain and unremarkable.
Carruth's abilities as an editor however are a touch better, utilizing the occasional jump
cut to illustrate the characters' disorientation when time shifting.
For those interested in the hypothetical science of time travel, this picture does a fantastic
job of exploring those concepts and ideas.
And if you manage to understand all of the temporal twists, you're smarter than I am-
because even after a second viewing, I had a very difficult time figuring it out.
The movie just sort of ends though, without properly examining the moral implications
of manipulating the time-line.
"Primer" may be dry and complicated, but it's extremely fascinating, and a GOOD movie.
For tonight's poll question, what's the most confusing movie you've ever seen?
Leave your response as a comment below.
Next up, on the opposite end of the scientific spectrum is "Hot Tub Time Machine".
The sophomore effort from director Steve Pin was released nationwide in March of 2010 where
it just about doubled its $36-million dollar budget.
When a malfunctioning Jacuzzi sends four friends back in time to a wild night of debauchery
in the winter of 1986, they must avoid anything that could alter the future.
The sci-fi comedy sees John Cusack, Rob Corddry, and Craig Robinson inhabiting the bodies of
their younger, crazier teenage selves, while Clark Duke tries to ensure his very existence.
While it's nice to see Cusack back in his most familiar decade, his performance is hardly
a highlight.
Instead, it's Corddry and Robinson who are the standout players: the former exhibiting
perpetual immaturity in the face of violence, sex, and temporal escapades while the latter
brings a great deal of moral integrity to the chauvinistic proceedings.
The supporting cast includes a quick part from Lizzy Caplan, the inspired inclusion
of Crispin Glover, once again stuck dealing with time travelers, and Chevy Chase appears
as a mystical hot tub repairman for good measure.
Even though it seems like the entire concept for this 101-minute feature was reverse engineered
from its ridiculous title, the plot actually works, bouncing from gross-out humor, to 80s
satire, to touching moments between friends.
A recurring gag involving the impending amputation of Glover's arm is particularly amusing, largely
thanks to Corddry's bloodlust.
The initial time-shifting sequence is accomplished with a frenzy of great editing and an explosion
of sound effects.
Trying to explain the magical properties of the titular bath, Duke questions, "Do I really
gotta be the asshole who says we got in this thing and went back in time?"
The R-rated script is filled with crude language, suggestive situations, and a few spectacular
instances of female nudity.
When Corddry and Duke argue about the benefits of a male-male-female threeway, it's hard
(no pun intended) not to laugh at their dilemma.
The costume design from Dayna Pink (no relation to the film's director) is a fantastic throwback
to the 1980s, mixing colorful legwarmers with big hair and flashy jackets.
Meanwhile, the soundtrack contains plenty of great period tunes from The Cutting Crew
to Motley Crue.
While the temporal backdrop of this story isn't explored as much as I would have liked,
it's a clever setup to a fun and childish 80s comedy - that ends with a wonderful coda.
The well-paced adventure actually has a surprising amount of character depth though, as it focuses
heavily on themes of regret, second chances, and diminishing friendships.
Between all of the puking, screwing, and punching, this movie actually has some heart, and is
worth seeing a couple times.
"Hot Tub Time Machine" has crass, but endearing characters in absurd situations.
Here's what you had to say about it.
Although it only had a few laugh-out-loud moments, this was a fun movie that incorporated
interesting time travel elements.
We both thought it was COOL.
Next up, "Predestination".
This project by Australian directors Michael and Peter Spierig premiered at South By Southwest
in March of 2014, and is an adaptation of renowned science fiction writer Robert A.
Heinlein's short story, "—All You Zombies—".
The cheap $3.4 million dollar production stars Ethan Hawke as a "temporal agent" recovering
from a disfiguring accident who must stop the one criminal who has eluded him throughout
time.
Hawke has always gravitated towards interesting projects, and once again turns in a nuanced
performance that anchors this picture's confusing concept in a necessary way.
The 97-minute narrative stays intimate, mostly revolving around only two characters, the
other played by Sarah Snook in a breakout performance.
Portraying a woman before and after transgender surgery, she's effectively required to play
a dual-role, and is wonderful at both.
Time travel is used merely as mechanism to explore different aspects and time periods
of her life, as the R-rated story deals more with her struggle of self-identity than anything
else.
Alluding to the titular nature of the universe, Snook asks, "Don't you think that things are
just inevitable?"
- It's this central question that seems to drive the characters, as the actions they
take set up situations necessary for their very existence.
Avoid trying to wrap your head around these circular paradoxes though, as it'll just leave
you with a headache.
It's impossible for me to share specific examples and scenes from "Predestination" without spoiling
massive amounts of plot, so I'll simply say that this picture is one worth experiencing
for yourself, with little foreknowledge.
There are however some interesting and resonating themes here about self-worth, and figuring
out your purpose in life.
The wide 2:1 canvas frames the actors with clean close-ups, and strong lighting.
Although the environments are seldom explored, we do get brief glimpses of period costumes
and locations, which are handled well.
Culminating with a series of compounding twists, the movie left me asking, "What the hell did
I just watch?"
It's not that it doesn't make sense, it's understanding the implications of these reveals
that will have you scratching your head hours after the credits roll.
A must watch for all fans of time travel, I thought "Predestination" was a compelling
and introspective four-dimensional narrative, and a GREAT film.
Next up tonight, "Time Lapse".
This low-budget indie flick had its world premiere in April of 2014 at the Brussels
International Fantastic Film Festival.
Making his directorial debut with the sci-fi thriller, Bradley King crafts a very intriguing
premise around time travel that never actually has anyone traveling through time.
When three friends discover a mysterious camera that takes pictures of the future, they conspire
to use it for personal gain until more disturbing images turn them against one another.
Even though there are a few supporting players, ninety percentage of this picture revolves
around this trio, played by Danielle Panabaker, Matt O'Leary, and George Finn.
The 101-minute plot is heavy on backstory and character motivation, allowing the talented
actors to handle the high-concept premise with plenty of believability.
Afraid to tamper with the bootstrap paradox, Finn is quick to remind everyone, "We gotta
do what's in the photo." - which often includes curious events and circumstances the group
doesn't always agree with.
Watching them rationalize betrayal and dangerous behavior just for the obedience of time itself
leads to a great deal of drama.
Panabaker is forced to cheat on her boyfriend right in front of him, just because it was
in the photo
from the future.
But I'm curious why anyone living in a ground-floor apartment with a huge picture window would
constantly leave the lights on and the shades open late at night.
I had a place like that once, and it felt like living in a fishbowl, our blinds were
always down.
I was disappointed that more wasn't done with the concept though.
The actions made by the characters were often frustrating, and not very ambitious.
These low-income individuals can see into the future, but waste their time betting on
local horse races?
Why not buy a lotto ticket and be done with it?
The narrative is cleanly shot, and tightly edited, progressing logically at a decent
clip.
The score by Andrew Kaiser uses deep, repetitive strings and loud piano chords to really amp
the suspense, which makes waiting for the next Polaroid to drop actually somewhat frightening.
Despite its extremely limited scope - the movie basically takes place in a single apartment
complex with only five speaking roles - there's enough here to satisfy most fans of temporal
mischief.
"Time Lapse"'s simplistic setup results in apprehension and intrigue - I thought it was
a GREAT film.
Finally tonight, my review of "Project Almanac".
This science fiction thriller, director Dean Israelite's inaugural effort, more than doubled
its budget only a month after its January 30, 2015 release.
The 106-minute story follows a group of teens who use secret plans to build a portable time
machine, which results in exciting windfalls and disastrous possibilities.
26-year-old Jonny Weston plays the brainy lead, who bounces from ambition to awkwardness
pretty well.
Sofia Black D'Elia is his beautiful high school crush, and the familiar romance between them
actually has some sweet moments.
The rest of the adolescent players aren't worth mentioning, except for Virginia Gardner
who is especially unconvincing as the often disembodied voice behind the camera.
The construction and invention process of the time machine, built out of car batteries,
an XBOX 360 and some circuit boards is handled with just enough faux-science to make it believable.
While childish, it's still pretty fun to see them use their time-hopping abilities for
blatant personal gain; which includes wining the lottery, passing a science test, and getting
revenge on a bully.
Despite their access to literally unlimited time, the group seems to always be in a rush
for some reason.
With some obvious nods to "Back To The Future", and similarities to the compounding mistakes
of "The Butterfly Effect", this movie still manages to carve its own place in the time-travel
niche with some unique concepts and imagery.
A shot where Allen Evangelista sticks his hand outside of the temporal wake during the
frightening moments before a jump is a particularly cool visual.
But the PG-13 rated film really gets interesting when the narrative graduates from the temporal
field trips and sophomore pranks to explore the consequences of manipulating the timeline.
Evangelista laments, "Whatever we did had some crazy ripple effects!".
There's some effective suspense late in the picture as the tapestry of the space time
continuum begins to unravel.
"Project Alamanc's" found-footage style presentation is its Achilles' heel though.
The constant documentation, including some rather private moments, is rarely believable,
even if they do point out this fact themselves.
The diegetic cinematography is plagued with unmotivated shakes and annoying digital glitches
that hide frequent jump-cuts.
Plus, the audio is obviously not coming from the onboard mic, how else are we able to hear
an intimate exchange between the attractive leads in the middle of a music festival from
fifty feet away?
The twist-ending conclusion is a satisfying one, but upon closer reflection it actually
reinforces that these characters never learned from their mistakes.
I'm reminded of George Santayana's famous quote, "Those who cannot learn from history
are doomed to repeat it."
- An ironic, if appropriate theme for a time travel film.
In spite of its glaring flaws though, this movie is a really fun story I wouldn't mind
seeing twice.
"Project Almanac" is an intriguing and enthusiastic temporal adventure hampered by a distracting
style.
And here's what you had to say about the film in the YouTube comments.
Critical of the confusing plot, dumb characters, and cheesy effects you thought this movie
was only MEH... in an extremely rare occurrence I scored this three points higher, with a
SEVEN.
Finally tonight, a look at some Tweet Critiques.
If you see a new movie in theaters, Tweet your review with the #JPMN hashtag.
In an effort to catch up on some personal work, next week I'll be sharing my thoughts
on a random collection of pre-written, but un-filmed reviews.
They are: "The Russia House", "The Joneses", "The Bourne Legacy", "Blue Ruin", and "Everly".
Most of these films aren't all that popular, so I don't expect you to have seen them - but
if you feel like watching them before Friday, please leave your reviews below.
If you'd like to watch more Movie Night videos, check out the "related reviews" on the right,
or click SUBSCRIBE to be notified of future uploads.
Also be sure to follow me on social media for updates and exclusive content between
episodes.
Once again, my name is Jonathan Paula, thank you for watching and listening.
Until next time, have a good Movie Night!