Without a Paddle

Three lifelong buddies (Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard) pay tribute to the memory of a daring (and recently deceased) pal by striking out into the Oregon mountains in search of the treasure of D.B. Cooper. The film’s five writers have done such lowly things as Joe Dirt, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and The Master of Disguise, and director Steven Brill can boast (if that’s the word) of his work on Little Nicky and Mr. Deeds. But they’re all at the top of their game here, and the result is both a hilarious comedy and a rousing adventure film, with echoes of everything from American Graffiti to Deliverance (including a witty cameo by Burt Reynolds). The stars likewise are in fine form, and their interplay has something like the bantering fun of the Bob Hope-Bing Crosby Road pictures.