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Pick, Sweep, Strum and Shred
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Mayberry Movie Review: "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story"
Hey guys, it's been the holidays, so it's been a while since I've given a review, there are actually two I will be doing today, since I did catch a few films during all the wonderful time off.
I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays, this review is on another film brought to us by Judd Apatow, and is satirically titled, "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story."
As usual, the review will be done in two segments, the first being a synopsis of the film, and secondly being my thoughts on the film.
1.
Walk Hard is a unique film in that it delivers a brand of comedy that we haven't been exposed to in quite some time. Though it has the typical elements of any hard comedy, that of raunchy dialog, sarcasm, and grotesque realism, the film utilizes elements of carnival, parody, and satire, a genre, not too common these days. Though the film gains both merit and criticism for it's style, (more on that later) "Walk Hard" is an enjoyable picture that centers around a Johnny Cash and Rock Star hybrid parody character named Dewey Cox, played BRILLIANTLY by John C. Reily.
Despite, the intricacies of this film as a particular brand of comedy, the structure of this film is quite simple. A younger, and less prospective (to say the least) brother Dewey Cox finds himself in a terrible circumstance that leads to the premature death of his older, and much more loved, brother. Upon witnessing his last words, Dewey Learns that he now must be great and successful for himself, and also for his older brother. The entire film revolves around this premise.
From this point on, "Walk Hard" becomes a film that becomes a pseudo-timeline for some key moments of America's socio-political history. The film if anything, is a mobile to convey the American popular lifestyle from the middle 20th, to the 21st century. Exploring topics from early Rock and Roll, to the more inquisitive, politically charged and "free" rock and roll of the 60's and 70's, the film doesn't stop until a parody of the "Rock and Roll hall of Fame" awards with Eddie Vedder making a cameo appearance. Other notable Cameos by Jack Black, Frankie Muniz, and a few others.
Given the structure and layout of the film, the rest of the content of the film is standard. The audience is exposed to Dewey Cox's experience with life on the road, marital infidelity, sex, drugs, fame and stardom. The film explores these different issues and uses them as vehicles for conveying their unique brand of comedy. The film is also a musical with some quality music composed with quality, and witty lyrics.
The story is simple, the point is simple, and the package that you get, is simple as well. There isn't a whole lot to this film, but in it's simplicity, it works.
2.
If one can accept what "Walk Hard" is for what it is, (that being a musical comedy), that one will be able to make this film a lot more enjoyable. Not to be harsh, but Walk Hard, is a film most enjoyable with a group of light hearted friends. A film I would actually consider a "Check Brain at the Door" film.
Why?
Simply because Walk Hard is an ecclectic and diverse film, and in some ways, a bad way. At moments, if you're looking for subtext or subtle messages, you ask yourself constantly, "Is this film carnival? Is this a parody? Or is this film a satire? Though the filmmaker's intentions may have been one of the above or a multiple combination of the three above, the film never really makes any progress in concretely establishing which sub-category of comedy it belongs to. That in itself can be frustrating, if you, as a film goer are interested in these sort of things.
The interesting thing about this film, and what sets itself apart from Judd Apatow's other films such as "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" is that it lacks the human, and sentimental emotion that is so prevalent in the other two films, and in many ways made "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" successful. Some of the raunchy humor is also an indicator that the film fails to deliver on some of the wit that Apatow is known for, and instead of clever and meaningful humor we have seen before, we're left with provacative and over-done grotesque humor. Given that a film like "Walk Hard" has so much content in it, the lack of relevant humor is almost an indicator that there wasn't enough writing time allotted for this film.
The one definite positive of tihs film is John C. Reily. No other actor would've made this film possible, and this film ONLY works because of Reily. If you're an avid fan of his acting, than I would absolutely recommend this film.
"Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" is an enjoyable film, but not if you're looking for a film that establishes itself as a film of significance. Though scenes with Jack Black playing The Beatles' Paul McCartney and scenes with Dewey and his Father are uproarious, "Walk Hard" struggles entirely too much with what it wants to be, and in doing so, simply makes it an entertaining and humorous spectacle, and little else.
Thank You!
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