Tim Allen, John Travolta, William H. Macy and Martin Lawrence hit the road in "Wild Hogs."

In 1991's "City Slickers," guys in midlife crisis take a vacation from their lives. Then they revisit their Wild West adventure in the sequel.

Walt Becker's "Wild Hogs" repeats the formula with two big differences: a better script and William H. Macy, who trumps a cast of stars in an outrageous comic role.

		'Wild Hogs' Starring: John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy. Director: Walt Becker. Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, and some violence. Web site: wildhogs.movies.go.com/ Related article Family Film Guide: 'Wild Hogs'

I rarely laugh at movies, and to be honest, I didn't expect much of "Wild Hogs." But this one made me laugh out loud. The first film screenplay by TV writer Brad Copeland ("NewsRadio," "Grounded for Life," "Arrested Development," "My Name Is Earl") retraces familiar paths but makes it fun, if not fresh.

In a middle-American suburb, four friends are feeling the pressures of midlife responsibility. Tim Allen plays a workaholic dentist; John Travolta plays a man on the verge of divorce from his supermodel wife; Martin Lawrence is a plumber with an overbearing wife; and Macy is a middle-aged computer geek still struggling to get a date. Their only escape from the suburban doldrums is their weekly motorcycle rides, black-leather adventures in male bonding that lead to a wilder ride -- 2,000 miles to recapture their eroding manhood.

Of course, one of them meets a girl. Of course the poseurs run into actual bikers who really were born to be wild. And of course there's a bar fight, motorcycle stunts, explosions, purple mountains' majesty and almost every biker song from the classic rock catalog -- if you want originality, go to an art cinema.

But within the bounds of mainstream movie accessibility, Copeland concocts a fun ride. It's a male bonding comedy, which means slapstick pratfalls and other physical humor, bodily function jokes, humiliating ranking and silly embarrassments in front of women.

The film could have done without a recurring homophobic theme involving a predatory gay cop. But give Macy a conflict and watch his character slam right into it. Allen and Lawrence play to their established images, and Travolta is fine as the straight man playing to their comic hijinks. He even shakes a leg in a silly dance sequence.

Ray Liotta gets plenty of chances to show off that trademark wide-mouthed laugh as leader of the pack of bad bikers, and Marisa Tomei gets to be sweet -- she does that well -- as a woman worth fighting for. And look for the king of the bikers (I don't want to give it away) in a very well-cast supporting role.