Plot
A group of suburban biker wannabes looking for adventure hit the open road, but get more than they bargained for when they encounter a New Mexico gang called the Del Fuegos.
Release Year: 2007
Rating: 5.9/10 (55,641 voted)
Critic's Score: 27/100
Director:
Walt Becker
Stars: Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, John Travolta
Storyline Four middle-aged men decide to take a road trip from Cincinnati to the Pacific in order to get away from their lives which are leading them nowhere. Taking their motorcycles, these "Wild Hogs" tear up the road and eventually stop in New Mexico for a drink not knowing that the bar belongs to the "Del Fuegos", a mean biker gang. When the Del Fuegos steal a bike that belongs to the Wild Hogs, the four men form a plan to steal their bike back.
Cast: Tim Allen
-
Doug Madsen
John Travolta
-
Woody Stevens
Martin Lawrence
-
Bobby Davis
William H. Macy
-
Dudley Frank
Ray Liotta
-
Jack
Marisa Tomei
-
Maggie
Kevin Durand
-
Red
M.C. Gainey
-
Murdock
Jill Hennessy
-
Kelly Madsen
Dominic Janes
-
Billy Madsen
Tichina Arnold
-
Karen Davis
Stephen Tobolowsky
-
Charley
Jason Sklar
-
Earl Dooble
Randy Sklar
-
Buck Dooble
Drew Sidora
-
Haley Davis
Opening Weekend: $39,699,023
(USA)
(4 March 2007)
(3 Screens)
Gross: $253,625,427
(Worldwide)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
The army-green bike Jack (Ray Liotta) is riding has the Orange County Choppers logo, the custom bike building company made famous in
American Chopper: The Series.
Goofs:
Continuity:
During the evening of the Chili Festival Dance there is a lady in a yellow hat, dancing. Yet at the same time she is behind the Del Fuego bikers as they pull up to the dance looking for the Wild Hogs.
Quotes:
[first lines]
Dudley Frank:
[after getting a fist-tap from Woody and nearly wiping out]
Whoa! Whoa! Oh! Man, oh, man. I almost lost it back there. I didn't know what was going on.
[hits a sign face first]
User Review
Its no American Beauty or Sideways in terms of the middle-aged crisis theme. Then again, that is a good thing....
Rating: 8/10
To compare Wild Hogs to comedic greats and classic movies about
mid-life crisis would be absolutely foolish. Sitting back and enjoying
the wild ride is your best choice in getting the full enjoyment out of
this flick. Containing a diverse cast that works quite well, a handful
of funny cameos, tons of predictable yet enjoyable scenarios, and a
rather surprising amount of physical humor; Wild Hogs is a startlingly
delightful comedy that isn't afraid to reach low for a laugh. Coming
off as more than just a guilty pleasure, we have good acting running
the show, as our longtime cinema veterans mesh together and bring out
their best comedic skills to deliver a nice trip through the United
States.
Wild Hogs follows four middle-aged men losing excitement (among other
things) in their daily aspects of life. Doug (Tim Allen) isn't the fun
guy he used to be, Bobby (Martin Lawrence) is not able to run his own
home, Woody (John Travolta) has lost pretty much everything, and Dudley
(William H. Macy) has nothing to begin with. The four of them decide to
take their boring lives out for a spin, and try to relive the glory
days of college-- ride off in their motorbikes across the country. The
main conflict is whether or not they can unleash the Wild Hogs in them
and be able to reach California in one piece. The other problem arises
when the well-known tough biker gang Del Fuegos crosses paths with
them.
The premise is something we've all seen before, yet it can still be
done well with the right group of people. Mixing John Travolta, Martin
Lawrence, Tim Allen, and William H. Macy is something that truly would
not, and could not have been predicted by anybody. Nonetheless, this
unique quartet does a fantastic job. Not one actor is overused or
overacting, and we see each of the actors' talents brought to life. Tim
Allen puts his physical humor to the test and succeeds. John Travolta
brings his comedic chops and also is shockingly hilarious. Martin
Lawrence has his good movies (Nothing to Lose) and his really bad
movies (Black Night, Big Momma's House 2) but in here, he doesn't go
too far, doesn't attempt too hard, and holds his own as the uncertain
Bobby. Topping them all is William H. Macy, whose physical comedy tops
all the others in this movie. Rounding out the cast is an assortment of
cameos and short roles that despite being good were quite underused
(Marisa Tomei, Stephen Tobolowsky, Ray Liotta, John C. McGinley, Peter
Fonda).
The laughs in here are present pretty much throughout the film, and it
ranges from funny little one-liners, to physical comedy, to lowbrow
comedy, to even a bit of absurdity. A bit of it is predictable, yet
some of it comes flying out of nowhere (literally and figuratively). We
have a nice bit of cinematography to capture some of it, including a
nice shot of "death" taking a liking to William H. Macy and a brilliant
game of "Bullslapping." The director, Walt Becker, knows better and
lets the camera roll and the actors take control of what is going on.
He was fortunate enough to capture the fun and silliness with little
effort.
We don't have Oscar material in the least bit, but we have material
that will spark laughing riots from the audience time and time again.
Like most decent comedies of this decade, its best not to be taken
seriously, because analyzing and nitpicking would distract from the
overall experience. Like what the characters in the film originally
wanted; it was a trip with no rules, no barriers, and no remorse. Wild
Hogs does just that; it was a raw, strong PG-13 ride with the violence,
sex, profanity, and look-away moments that anyone on the open road
would witness. Also supporting this movie is a nice soundtrack,
cleverly adding some good Southern rock, Bon Jovi, AC/DC, and even
White Zombie. Try to catch some subtle Disney humor involving the
actors and character's names.
Bottom Line: So what if the script isn't groundbreaking? So what if the
direction didn't enhance anything? So what if the story became a bit
predictable? We have four veteran actors making fools of themselves for
almost two hours on the open road, and with very little time in between
potential laughs. It was just pure popcorn entertainment, and isn't
that what you want on a Friday night? Wild Hogs will not inspire you to
do something, but it will inspire some conversations and maybe even a
second viewing. Besides, it is rare to see Tim Allen and Martin
Lawrence provide a slew of funny moments. While this movie could have
benefited from fewer clichés and more unpredictability, it stands tall
as the first good comedy of 2007.
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