(rated R, 96 mins.)
Famous last words. “If I had a car…” is what girlfriend (Leelee Sobieski) tells would-be boyfriend Lewis, (Paul Walker). So he buys one, takes to the road to surprise her at her college far away, in the Salt Lake City vicinity. What he didn’t bargain for is a passenger, his brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn) a prankster who gets his kicks on their cross-country gig by using a pre-historic chat room (a CB radio) to mess with the minds of lonely truckers. Imagine your worst high school prank gone haywire. This story puts a new spin on sending the delivery boy with pizza to a neighbor who didn’t order it. Walker is excellent as the cute, underdog brother trying to do the right thing but digging a deeper hole. Zahn is part Woody Harrelson dopey, part Michael J. Fox looking spunky as the know it all brother, and Sobeiski is sweet and likable as the young Helen Hunt talk/look a like sidekick. But their fine performances don’t help in camouflaging more unnecessary teen violence.
Famous last words. “If I had a car…” is what girlfriend (Leelee Sobieski) tells would-be boyfriend Lewis, (Paul Walker). So he buys one, takes to the road to surprise her at her college far away, in the Salt Lake City vicinity. What he didn’t bargain for is a passenger, his brother, Fuller (Steve Zahn) a prankster who gets his kicks on their cross-country gig by using a pre-historic chat room (a CB radio) to mess with the minds of lonely truckers. Imagine your worst high school prank gone haywire. This story puts a new spin on sending the delivery boy with pizza to a neighbor who didn’t order it. Walker is excellent as the cute, underdog brother trying to do the right thing but digging a deeper hole. Zahn is part Woody Harrelson dopey, part Michael J. Fox looking spunky as the know it all brother, and Sobeiski is sweet and likable as the young Helen Hunt talk/look a like sidekick. But their fine performances don’t help in camouflaging more unnecessary teen violence.