Susan Granger’s review of “Wild Hogs: (Buena Vista/Disney)
Scratch the surface of suburbia and, underneath, you’ll find “weekend warriors” who are eager to ditch their offices and shelve their suits to don black leather jackets and jump on their Harleys for an escapist adventure.
Hoping to extend their fun, four long-time friends from Cincinnati decide to cut loose and hit the road to California, leaving their discontentment and dilemmas far behind. There’s Doug (Tim Allen), an insecure dentist whose wife has put him on a veggie diet; swaggering, wheeler-dealer Woody (John Travolta), whose supermodel wife has walked out on him; unemployed plumber-turned-wannabe writer Bobby (Martin Lawrence) with a shrewish wife and abusive mother-in-law; and painfully shy Dudley (William H. Macy), a mild-mannered, accident-prone computer geek.
As luck would have it, their supposedly life-changing trip hits several snags, including a scary roadhouse encounter with the nasty Del Fuego biker gang, led by volatile Jack (Ray Liotta), who take offense at their yuppie attitude and follow The Wild Hogs, as they call themselves, to New Mexico. (Stay for the end credits for more about those delirious Del Fuegos.)
Working from Brad Copeland’s flaccid, predictable, male-bonding script, director Walt Becker (“National Lampoon’s Van Wilder,”) relies on silly slapstick, failing to capitalize on the comedic potential inherent in his talented quartet. Homophobia runs rampant, not just in a subplot involving a lascivious gay cop (John C. McGinley). Wasted as window-dressing are the women: Marisa Tomei, Jill Hennessy and Tichina Arnold.
The most memorable moment occurs when an immediately recognizable wind-beaten biker shows up, advising them, “Ride hard or stay home.” On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Wild Hogs” laboriously revs in with a squealing, sputtering 4. Undoubtedly more fun to make than to watch, these wheezy city slickers are un-easy riders.
