without a paddle (12a) review

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Average Ratings

Value for Money	6.5/10
Overall rating	6.5/10

50% Recommended1 out of 2 Reviews

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By jayscandal on 10th Jan 2005

jayscandal's Ratings

Starring Actor/Actress	Seth Green, Matthew Lillard, Dax Shepherd
Where Did You See It?	Cinema
Value for money	4/10
Overall value	4/10
jayscandal's recommendation

Good Points

Occasionally funny, an amusing Dax Shepherd.

Bad Points

Irritating, confused, unthrilling, Matthew Lillard.

General Comments

Without A Paddle review
by Joshua Morrall

Rating: 2/5

This is not a good film. I thought it might surprise me, the trailer wetted my appetite for Seth Green and Dax Shepherd who looked to be on top comedy form, and despite the fact that I loathe every inch of Matthew Lillard's smug face, I decided that I would go and see Without A Paddle.

It's a simple premise, three school buddies reunite to go and hunt down a treasure they fantasised about finding when their old buddy (Antony Starr) was still alive. Whilst there, they encounter many humorous obstacles, fat, redneck weed growers included, and calamity and very rare comedy ensues.

The film's weakness lies in its lack of comedy. There are certainly moments, but they are fleeting and quickly replaced by a return to the serious nature of much of the friends' dialogue. The characters' chemistry is mediocre in quality and their most positive feature is that they are are given quite singular personalities, which helps the comedy work well whenever it raises its elusive head from out of the undergrowth, with the exception of Lillard's character Jerry, who seems to be torn in two directions and makes him less amusing to watch than the others.

The plot is simple and executed to its full extent. And you are certainly getting your money's worth as this film seems to stretch on for quite some time, the New Zealand location giving the film an epic quality which is wasted.

Without A Paddle could have been very little more than it was. The actors all do their jobs and there is a fairly well-used but well-meaning moral handed to us at the end (with a lead weight). The film wants to push itself more into the drama (and in some ways romance) than it can really handle, and the strong homoerotic element is depressingly dealt with in a childish fashion. Their needs to be a much greater injection of comedy (one-liners, set pieces and slapstick) than there is, with less of the drawn-out, flat chase sequences. Without A Paddle is how this cast should have stayed.

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