in "the new york times" review of the movie, vincent canby wrote that ""finders keepers,"...has a lot of charm best described as loose jointed. it's not especially graceful, but it grows increasingly funny as it approaches the nebraska showdown...though the pacing of the film is uneven - its highpoints stand out like clumps of trees in the flat nebraska landscape, "finders keepers" is unexpectedly satisfying. the good humor and the wit are even retroactive, making the opening sequences seem funnier than they actually were".