Friends Helping Friends

Hoffman’s winningly offbeat latest (after Clean Hands) centers on two likable losers who wind up with an accidental fortune in cryptocurrency. Denver deadbeats Bunny Simpson and Jerry LeClair agree to beat up a local judge for $2,500, but they bungle the job and end up in jail. Simpson gets the charges dropped after agreeing to work undercover for a pair of cops, neither of whom will disclose the details of the assignment. Soon enough, Simpson learns he’s being asked to infiltrate a group of white supremacists and steal a notebook from a safe in their command center. He carries out the theft and sneaks a peek inside the notebook, where he finds a strange 24-word code. Eventually, he discovers that the code—a “seed phrase” in crypto-speak—is the key to opening an account worth $4.4 million. Instead of handing the notebook over to the cops, Simpson reunites with LeClair, and they flee Denver. After they get drunk one night and lose the notebook to a thief, they embark on a wild chase with a happy finish. Hoffman brings shades of Elmore Leonard to this charming caper, with a comedic touch that enlivens the proceedings from start to finish. It’s a rip-roaring good time. Agent: Charlotte Sheedy, Charlotte Sheedy Literary. (Mar.)