TheRetroCritic

On paper, The Raven is awesome. Having Edgar Allan Poe try and solve murders linked to his own stories is a premise which could be used for just about any writer and... you know what? I'd be up for that franchise. Can you imagine? Jules Verne-themed murders with Jules Verne himself on the case? Tunneling down to the center of the Earth to find some crazed criminal in a hot-air balloon... Silly? Perhaps. But also pretty darn great. The Raven has a fun concept and although the reviews were rather harsh with it upon its release, this is a terrific little movie! Like Sleepy Hollow , The Raven brings back the vibe and gothic sensibilities of old Hammer horror movies and does so brilliantly creating a unique whodunit that's both camp and completely involving. This is mostly thanks to John Cusack's fun interpretation of the Poe character, the film's slick, moody look and, funnily enough, the love story at the heart of it all. Rare thing that, a romantic subplot in a th

How could a film called Hot Tub Time Machine possibly be any good? By being so damn freakin' fun and gross out silly you forget to ask all the "whys" and "hows" a normal film would warrant, that's how! As silly as I felt in the cinema asking for a ticket for...Hot Tub Time Machine...it was all well worth it. You've got time travel, John Cusack, the 80s, Chevy Chase, Crispin Glover, that little big guy from Sex Drive , huuuuge amounts of random silliness and the line "nobody fucks my mother in the past!", what more could you want? Nothing that's what. Great great fun.