CINEWORLD

HOT TUB TIME MACHINE 2 (15) Rating: Nought stars

Since the first film, childhood pals Lou (Rob Corddry), Adam (John Cusack) and Nick (Craig Robinson) have exploited the mystical whirlpool for personal gain. Lou has amassed a fortune of 2.3 billion US dollars as frontman of rock band Motley Lou and inventor of the search engine Lougle. Adam courted celebrity with his novel Jacuzzi Timelord then retreated from the limelight (Cusack doesn't appear), while Nick has become a chart-topping singer-songwriter by plagiarising songs that haven't been composed yet. The flimsy plot kicks into pedestrian first gear at Lou's annual party where the boorish host torments his son Jacob (Clark Duke) and assorted guests. A crash of thunder causes a brief power outage and someone uses the cover of darkness to shoot off Lou's manhood. Nick and Jacob drag the wounded billionaire to the hot tub, add a vial of nitrotrinadium to power the device and prepare to travel back to before the ill-fated shindig. Their prime suspects for the shooting include Lou's enraged wife Kelly (Collette Wolfe), disgruntled childhood friend Gary Winkle (Jason Jones) and Lougle employee Brad (Kumail Nanjiani). Unexpectedly, the trio slingshot forwards in time to March 26, 2025, where they join forces with Adam's goofy son (Adam Scott) to unravel the mystery. Hot Tub Time Machine 2 is a lumbering litany of toilet humour including a generous spray of bodily fluids.