By Robert Scucci | Published
When I was 15, I rented a copy of Without paddle from the local video store and was accused of not returning the title. Since I was the last registered person to view the movie and it wasn’t in their inventory, and I wanted to continue renting movies, I reluctantly forked over $80 to stay in good standing with the owner. Years later, I found the DVD case wedged tightly between the sections of my entertainment center, and Without paddle So it’s still the most expensive film in my collection.
Now that Without paddle is streaming on Netflix, I wonder if it was worth paying such a high fee for a critical comedy starring Seth Green, Matthew Lillard, and Dax Shepard. After streaming the title (I lost the DVD again but it’s floating around somewhere), I can rest assured that I have no regrets – as stupid as Without paddle It’s perhaps the ultimate heartwarming early survival comedy, and it’s exactly the kind of movie that critics hate, but fans of low-brow slap-stick humor will eat up.
The best buds reconnect
Without paddle focuses on three adult childhood friends: Dan (Seth Green), Jerry (Matthew Lillard), and Tom (Dax Shepard). After succumbing to the chores of adult life, the three friends come together to celebrate the life of their recently deceased friend, Billy (Anthony Starr). Billy was known to be an adventure enthusiast and died while parasailing in Costa Rica during one of his many risky excursions.
Dan is a delicate doctor who owns a successful private practice, but he has difficulty meeting women because he is the kind of hypochondriac who is afraid of things like plastic wrap. Jerry is a reluctant but successful businessman who prefers to spend all his free time surfing, causing his girlfriend, Denise (Bonnie Somerville), to question his commitment to their relationship. The trio is rounded out by Tom, a compulsive liar who also happens to be the least successful but most confident member of the group.
In search of hidden treasure
Gathered together in the treehouse of their childhood, depicted in the opening sequence of Without paddleDan, Jerry and Tom remember all the good times they had with Billy growing up before they went their separate ways. While rummaging through their old possessions, they remember the blood pact they made with Billy to find treasure hidden by a well-known con artist and adventurer named DB Cooper. Little did they know, Billy spent most of his adult life obsessed with the legend of DB Cooper and his hidden fortune, and continued to add his findings to their stash in the cabin in hopes of tracing a discover Cooper’s tracks.
Realizing that Billy died before reuniting the gang and finding the treasure, the three friends decide to travel to Oregon in Billy’s honor so they can keep their pact.
Things keep getting worse
With little to no outdoor experience, Dan, Jerry and Tom head into the remote wilderness of Without paddle with nothing more than a rental kayak and a few cases of beer. Against the advice of the local sheriff (Ray Baker), they go looking for DB Cooper’s treasure and things quickly go off the rails. Even the Native American river guide they rent the canoe from tells them the boat is equipped with a GPS tracker so he can retrieve it after they drown in the roaring river they are about to cross, but they are so determined that they leave. with their old compass and Billy’s map anyway.
Without paddle quickly and continually escalates as the group of inexperienced friends battle a ravenous bear repeatedly, get thrown over waterfalls, strip and huddle in the rain to keep warm, and accidentally stumble upon a massive drug operation run by two deranged mountain men named Dennis (Abraham Benrubi) and Elwood (Ethan Suplee) while doing Deliverance references (keep an eye out for a Burt Reynolds cameo in the third act). As the gang finds themselves in deeper and deeper waters (literally and figuratively), their friendship and commitment to celebrating Billy’s life keeps them from turning back, even as their mission shifts from hunting to treasure to simple survival of the elements.
Wacky energy and chemistry
As weird as Without paddle Maybe Seth Green, Matthew Lillard, and Dax Shepard make it work because they come across as people you’d want to go on this type of adventure with. At the very least, if I was about to be killed and never found in a remote wilderness, I would want to go out singing Culture Club songs while getting shot by a drug dealer who also likes to sing his best rendition of “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” between machine gun blasts.
At the very least, a 15 percent critical score on Rotten Tomatoes versus a 68 percent Popcornmeter score is sufficient indication that Without paddle found its audience. Without paddle is not a profound film that attempts to explore man’s hubris while teaching its audience a lesson about the dangers of the great outdoors.
If you want to see someone get mauled to death by a bear, you can go watch Hinterland.
If you want to sit back and laugh while three friends go over their heads in search of hidden treasure, then you can stream Without paddle on Netflix.
