Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

It was very silly.  It was really pretty dumb.  But it did make me laugh.  A whole lot.  I'm talking about Partners, a crime caper/comedy starring David Paymer and Casper Van Dien.

Paymer plays Bob, your average everyday nerdy Mr. Nobody.  He's the kind of man that no one ever notices, unless they happen to glance at him as they step right over him on their way up the ladder.  Well Bob's had enough of his humdrum life.  He steals a computer program from his company, and decides to sell it on the black market.  It can get him a cool million, and a chance to walk away from his boring existence.  So he sets off, with the program tucked into a briefcase, for his new life.

The problem is, Bob's not so bright.  He hasn't really thought through all of the little pesky details about how to pull off this job.

Enter Axel (Van Dien).  Axel is like the anti-Bob.  Good looking, smooth, smart as a whip, and with lightening-fast hands, he can steal your wallet right out from under you, and you'd never know what hit you.  He can just as quickly make off with your phone, your ID, pretty much anything that can be snatched, Axel's quick hands can snatch.

In no time at all, Axel steals Bob's briefcase.  The problem is, Axel has no idea what the contents mean, nor does he know the information about the buyer.  So he needs Bob.  And Bob actually needs Axel, although he'd be loath to admit it.  But he has to face the facts - Axel's much smarter, and much more detail-oriented.  Thus the two become very reluctant partners.

What follows is a whole bunch of silliness. 

Double-, triple-, and quadruple-crosses.   Multiple characters coming in, somehow gaining control of the briefcase, and demanding that they be made partners in this deal.  There's the detective from the company from which the program was stolen.  Jennifer Lewis steals many of the scenes as she's always just one step behind the briefcase-holder.  And Vanessa Angel plays Axel's girlfriend.  When Axel hides the briefcase in her house, she gets ideas in her head, about how she might be able to buy her way into a new life. 

That briefcase changed hands so many times, it was hard to keep up!

The whole thing is unrealistic, silly, and at times really dumb.  But it's OK, as long as you remember that this movie is supposed to be funny!  Don't take it as a serious crime drama, and don't look for any intelligence.  Just enjoy the romp.

Like the scene in which Axel handcuffs himself to Bob, in order to keep Bob from running off.  The dialog that ensues when Bob has to go to the bathroom, but is too shy to do it in front of Axel was really funny.  Then there's a scene where Axel and Bob need a hotel room to stay for the night, but the only room available is a "honeymoon suite" complete with heart-shaped vibrating bed, and some other things that two straight men sharing a room really wouldn't have need for.  Particularly funny was the maid's reaction, when she comes in to clean the room.

Directed by Joey Travolta (John's brother), this movie just screams "low budget!!!".  It would be very easy to write this off as just another really dumb movie.  But with Paymer and Van Dien playing off each other so brilliantly, I was absolutely entertained for the entire 90 minutes.  So what if there were about 30 times where the plot made no sense, or where someone does something really dumb?  I laughed plenty of times, and came away smiling.  See it, if you just feel like laughing at a really dumb movie.

Recommended: Yes