"Out on a Limb" offers some hearty laughs in a story not dissimilar to "Doc Hollywood." But it has several underdeveloped plot points and characters and simply cannot sustain its momentum.
Matthew Broderick is perfect as a button-down yuppie, a wheeler-dealer whose troubles begin when he heads for the rural town of Buzzsaw, where his mother has settled after marrying a mysterious man with a past (Jeffrey Jones).
The main plot has Broderick's crime-story obsessed younger sister (bright and charming CourtneyPeldon), who has cried wolf a few times too many, witnessing that their stepfather has been replaced by his evil twin (also played by Jones). No one believes her, of course.
A lot of the film's gags are built around the local eccentrics Broderick encounters, including a pair of idiot brothers, both named Jim (John C. Reilly and Michael Monks), who live deep in the woods and may remind you of Larry, Darryl and Darryl from the old "Newhart" show; a young woman (Heidi Kling) on the run, who steals Broderick's car; and two local cops, both confused about everything that's going on.
At its worst, things really get desperate when a bear sneaks up behind Broderick and Kling. But there are some hilarious set pieces here, as when Jones the evil twin pretends to be his brother, confusing names and events with the family, and just about every scene with Reilly and Monks. The funniest bit, however, is two kids who are childhood versions of movie critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel — especially the "Ebert" kid, a dead-on ringer.
Veber's direction does squeeze some big laughs from the first-time screenplay by Daniel and Joshua Goldin (who are twin brothers) and that's enough for a moderate recommendation.
"Out On a Limb" is rated PG for violence, profanity and nudity (Broderick, who is left in the woods without his clothes when his car is stolen).