Former Dukes of Hazzard star John Schneider's family-friendly action picture — which he himself calls "a very ambitious home movie" — is rough around the edges but so good-natured.
Former professional racer J.R. Collier (Schneider) left the sport after a bitter split with underhanded team owner Mr. Fanning (Fred Welch), who wanted him to throw a race. But he's in the process of forging a new career with his old pal, mechanic Billy (Rex Smith): J.R. coerces rich jerks into sucker bets, then wins their fancy cars with a little help from the souped-up Dodge Charger he calls "Traveler," and Billy gets the vehicles into resale-market shape. Happy-go-lucky by nature, J.R. has two pressing problems: He needs to stop his estranged wife, Becky (Elly Castle, Schneider's real-life spouse), from divorcing him, and he needs to figure out why everyone thinks he has something that belongs to Fanning. The answer to the latter lies in the silver Series-1 Shelby he won from Fanning's flunky, Tex (Phil Redrow). Tex was transporting a package for the boss when he made a fateful bar bet with J.R., and he forgot to retrieve Fanning's property before relinquishing the car keys. But the Becky problem is a tougher one. She's tired of being married to a feckless, overgrown adolescent, especially since their teenage daughter, Danielle (Karis Schneider), is diabetic: Sick kids and no health insurance are a bad mix. But J.R. adores Becky and has Danielle — a real chip off the old block — in his corner. If he can just fend off Fanning's pesky goons for long enough, he'll work the whole thing out.
Unlike most squeaky-clean independent features, Schneider's PG-rated car-chase comedy — written at the peak of his TV fame but unproduced for 25 years — has no religious agenda. It's just amiable entertainment with no nasty language — "you twit" is about as bad as it gets — no bloody violence and no lewdness. It's never going to steal viewers from the FAST AND THE FURIOUS franchise, but it delivers mild vehicular mayhem (including a high-speed pursuit by helicopter) with a handful of moral lessons as a bonus. It's too long, the acting is variable, and the story is pretty thin. But able-bodied people who park in handicapped spots are selfish, and there's something oddly charming about a hot-car movie completely devoid of rump-shaking hoochies in cheek-high miniskirts. leave a comment --Maitland McDonagh
