Charity's Place

WITHOUT A PADDLE

REVIEWED BY SHANNON H.

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: sexual content, profanity, drug use

Rated:

I go to the movies for one purpose: to be entertained. I really like comedies because they suit that general purpose. This particular film was quite comedic and somewhat entertaining, however, it isn't without its flaws. It takes place in the mid-seventies when four childhood friends Tom, Jerry, Dan, and Billy spend their time having adventures together and hanging out in a tree house. They had pretend jungle adventures, jumped their bikes over a river creek, and kept a "treasure chest" in their clubhouse. The movie fast-forwards to high school graduation where the guys part ways to go on to become successful in life.

Ten years later, Jerry (Matthew Lillard), Dan (Seth Green), and Tom (Dax Shepard) reunite at the funeral of their childhood friend, Billy Newwood. The three of them decide to take on their ultimate childhood fantasy: to find the treasure of D.B. Cooper, a man who had disappeared into the woods with several thousand dollars and was never seen again. The aim of this trip is to do something incredibly fun (and stupid) before they all grow old. After ten years, Dan has become a doctor, Jerry a business executive who would much rather surf instead of work, and Tom is a compulsive liar who claims to sell Harley motorcycles for a living. The three friends are warned by a "local authority" that going into the woods to find their treasure is risky but Tom shrugs it off, claiming that he knows how to handle the woods and water rapids (where they will be taking a canoe to the treasure). Tom, Dan, and Jerry soon encounter various obstacles such as an angry bear who mistakes Dan for her cub, two rednecks with guns and attitude problems, and the elements.

The sexual content is pretty extreme for a PG-13 movie and most of it deals with references to homosexuality. Dax is fooling around with a woman (both are in their underwear) when the young woman's lesbian lover walks in on them. The three friends make several references to being raped by mountain men in the forest (in reference to the 1972 film Deliverance). They huddle together in a cave for shelter during the rain (in order to preserve body heat) and a couple of sexual innuendoes are made. They also stumble on two scantily-clad hippie chicks living in a tree and imagine themselves sleeping with them. There's implied nudity in that particular scene. Dan is shown sleeping with one of the hippie chicks, in bed with bare shoulders. Continuous sexual references abound. Profanity is surprisingly high. Two characters drop the f-word and s*** is used several times, along with d*mn.

Drug use is also surprisingly rampant. While on their trip, the guys drink beer, run through a marijuana crop grown by the redneck guys (the crop field is set on fire by fireworks left lying around) resulting in Dan, Jerry, and Tom being temporarily stoned, as well as two guard dogs (rottweilers named Lynard and Skynard) owned by the rednecks. Violence ranges from slapstick to gunfire. The three friends are constantly shot at with sniper rifles, semi-automatic machine guns, and 9mm handguns. The drug-dealing rednecks nearly get blown by a grenade but end up getting smashed by a falling tree (they survive only to be arrested by authorities). Dan, Jerry, and Tom, along with the hippie chicks, drop paper bags full of excrement on two, gun-toting individuals.

Aside from the extreme offensive content, the film provides a message. The three friends run into a mountain man named Del (Burt Reynolds) who tells them that in order to make the most out of life you should always do what you will think that will make you happy and not to waste your life on things you don't enjoy. Jerry decides to overcome his commitment issues and propose to his girlfriend. Dan finally finds a girlfriend after being the unattractive nerd for so long. The film also reveals problems the guys have trouble trying to overcome. Jerry is a commitment-phobic, Dan is phobic about everything, especially saran-wrap, and Tom is a compulsive liar who lied about selling motorcycles (as well as being a white-water river guide) and admitted to having a gambling problem (brought on by his father who was also a gambler). Tom is also seen lying about his adventures to a group of boy scouts while on a camping trip.

The film had some funny moments but it was on the whole mediocre. The sexual content, profanity, and drug use were probably on the borderline of an R rating. I would not recommend this film to ANY Christian despite its moral.