Hot Tub Time Machine 2 Blu-ray Review

The video presentation of "Hot Tub Time Machine 2" on Blu-ray delivers a generally pleasing visual experience, although it does have a few shortcomings. The digital shoot offers a quality picture that is neither flat nor overly glossy, presenting a rich and complex image. Every hair and facial feature, especially in close-up shots of characters like Lou, remains meticulously detailed and clear. The computer graphics, especially those set in the future, are sharp and intimately detailed. While basic image clarity is robust, rendering skin tones accurately and ensuring black levels aren't problematic, certain visual elements like shadows tend to be murky, detracting from finer details.

Colors across the board are vibrant, with cool technological blues standing out and a wide array of hues on clothes and various surfaces adding to the visual appeal. Objects both in the foreground and background hold their clarity well, ensuring that the multitude of signs, cars, and holograms seen throughout are legible and distinct. While primary colors remain vibrant, secondary hues are rendered cleanly, contributing to the film’s overall comedic tone. However, contrast can feel uninspired and somewhat muted at times, giving parts of the film a flat appearance. Despite this, whites continue to be bright and sparkling.

Ultimately, while there are plenty of positives such as the absence of noise, blockiness, aliasing, or other unwanted artifacts, the encode does suffer from weak black levels and a lackluster overall vibrancy in some scenes. The presentation isn’t flawless but remains enjoyable for its detailed textures and broad color palette.

"Hot Tub Time Machine 2" features a robust and dynamic DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack, providing an immersive auditory experience that is both engaging and technically impressive. The music elements are expansive and seamlessly emerge from the speakers with exceptional balance and clarity. The surround channels are thoroughly utilized, creating an encompassing soundfield that effectively draws the listener into the various scenes. Notably, ambient effects are persistently present, enhancing the realism of the settings, such as the lively noise of party scenes that almost transport the ears to the actual locations. Gunshots and other profound effects are precisely articulated, providing a substantial sonic impact.

Throughout indoor and outdoor scenes alike, the attention to sonic details is evident with subtle atmospheric cues that significantly improve immersion. Indoor scenes often focus on conversation, but the track ensures that dialogue remains clear, precise, and never overshadowed by surrounding sounds. The front soundstage boasts impressive channel separation and mid-range fidelity, supporting off-screen effects convincingly. Outdoor sequences benefit from the detailed portrayal of environmental sounds, including bustling traffic and natural ambient noises, enhancing the authenticity of the scene settings. The low-end performance is noteworthy, offering deep, responsive bass that adds a palpable depth to action sequences and musical selections, delivering a powerful auditory punch.

The Blu-ray of "Hot Tub Time Machine 2" offers a robust selection of extras that enhance the viewer's experience with behind-the-scenes insights and entertaining content. The audio commentary by Director Steve Pink and Writer Josh Heald stands out, as it weaves a fun narrative filled with anecdotes, production details, and scrapped ideas. Additional features include an informative making-of segment, which provides concise interviews with the cast and crew, while the movie’s futuristic aspects are dissected in various short featurettes. Fans of bloopers and extended scenes will also find a treat in the additional footage provided.

Extras included in this disc:

• Audio Commentary: Steve Pink and Josh Heald discuss production details, anecdotes, and story elements.
• The Making of Hot Tub Time Machine 2: Cast and crew interviews about the film's plot and themes.
• The Future as Seen from the Hot Tub!: Five segments on the futuristic technology in the film.
• You're in the Hot Tub Now!: Ten short featurettes on different plot details and character explorations.
• Deleted Scenes/Extended Scenes: Including Dorchen at Work, More Mirror, Mirror, and others.
• Bloopers and General F%#! Ups by the Cast: Fun outtakes from the production.

"Hot Tub Time Machine 2" attempts to revisit the comedic time-travel premise that its predecessor successfully explored, but unfortunately lacks the original's charm and coherence. The film reunites most of the cast, including Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, and Clark Duke, along with the addition of Adam Scott. Set in the year 2025, the sequel follows the characters as they navigate a future filled with absurd technological advancements and ridiculous scenarios in a quest to solve a murder mystery. This somewhat promising setup quickly devolves into a series of stale and uninspired gags, heavily reliant on crude humor and repetitive jokes that feel rehashed from the first film.

The core characters, particularly Lou (Corddry), continue their antics but seem weighed down by an incoherent narrative and excessive gross-out humor. While there are fleeting moments of amusement, such as Robinson's character spoofing pop songs for cheap laughs, these instances are overshadowed by an overarching sense of aimlessness. The film's attempts at character development falter, and any deeper exploration of relationships or time travel mechanics is buried under an avalanche of juvenile jokes. The future world depicted is neither captivating nor innovative, making the movie's efforts to push the comedy envelope feel lackluster.

Director Steve Pink's love for 80s comedies is evident but does little to salvage this sequel from its own shortcomings. Despite earnest performances from the cast, particularly Duke who injects moments of potential drama, "Hot Tub Time Machine 2" ultimately offers little more than mindless entertainment that barely scrapes by on recycled content. The departure of John Cusack is keenly felt, and the film struggles without his grounding presence, resulting in a disappointing follow-up that leaves audiences wishing for a time machine to undo this misstep.

"Hot Tub Time Machine 2," directed by Steve Pink, is a largely uninspired sequel to the somewhat cult-classic comedy of 2010. The absence of John Cusack is noticeable, but the film's issues run far deeper than missing cast members. The movie relies heavily on raunchy humor, with many jokes feeling forced rather than organically interwoven into the narrative. Returning core cast members give sincere performances, but they are overshadowed by a script burdened with lowbrow humor and shallow dialogue. This results in a viewing experience that feels more monotonous and less coherent than its predecessor.

From a technical perspective, Paramount's Blu-ray release of "Hot Tub Time Machine 2" excels. The video quality is excellent, showcasing clear and vibrant visuals that capture the film's various settings with precision. More notably, the audio presentation impresses, delivering immersive and well-defined soundscapes that enhance the viewing experience significantly. The Blu-ray also includes a modest assortment of supplementary materials that may appeal to fans of the original film.

In conclusion, "Hot Tub Time Machine 2" is a mixed bag. While it succeeds on a technical level with outstanding video and audio quality, the film itself struggles with an incoherent plot and over-reliance on crude humor. Fans of the first film may find some enjoyment, but general audiences might want to approach this sequel with caution. Rent before committing to a purchase to determine if it's worth the investment.