Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007)

The Judd Apatow gang take on spoof comedy in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. John C. Reilly plays Dewey Cox, who at a young age, chopped his brother Nate in half with a machete. This tragedy brought contempt towards him from his father, forcing him to leave home with his girlfriend at age 14. Feeling guilty about killing his extremely talented brother, Dewey decides to be double great, for the both for them. Walk Hard follows Dewey's life from his humble beginning's in the music business, to becoming a drug addicted egomaniac. Making fun of everybody from Johnny Cash to The Beatles, Walk Hard reminds me of what a spoof comedy should be. Funny.


Unlike recent spoof movies such as Date Movie, Epic Movie, Meet the Spartans, Superhero Movie, and many many others that make me want to vomit, Walk Hard does not rely on pop culture to make it's jokes funny and relevant. What it does rely on is actual comedic ability, and the writers and stars of Walk Hard have plenty of that. In the past year and a half, Judd Apatow has continually proven that he is a force to be reckoned with in the comedic industry. He is very talented in being able to tell what is funny from what is stupid. It has reached a point in time where whenever you see the tag "Apatow Productions" in a movie's credits, you are guaranteed a great movie. Walk Hard marks John C. Reilly's first attempt at being the front man in a comedy film, and he masters the task with ease. Along with an excellent supporting cast consisting of Jenna Fischer, Tim Meadows, Kristin Wiig, and many others, Walk Hard sticks it to every biopic about a musician in recent years. Perhaps the best part of Walk Hard are the other people being spoofed, such as Elvis, The Beatles, and Bob Dylan.


The one downfall of making a spoof movie is the fact that there are going to be a lot of jokes that are hit and miss. Walk Hard is no exception to this fact, especially once you start to get near the end of the movie. The hit and miss ratio begins to shrink greatly once you get past the hour and a half mark. Length is another flaw for this film. Much like Apatow's past movies like Superbad and Knocked Up, the movie begins to sag as you feel like they should be just about wrapping things up. Walk Hard degenerates near the end of its run, as it completely drops its premise and basically jumps off the deep end and does whatever it wants. Luckily, the very end of the film puts things back on track and keeps you satisfied. I also must give kudos to those who wrote the songs featured in Walk Hard. Even with the nonsensical lyrics, I enjoyed basically every song that was sung.


It is about time somebody made a spoof movie that didn't suck, and it makes sense that that somebody would be Judd Apatow. Next time you are in the mood for a GOOD spoof film, watch Walk Hard. My Rating: (7/10)


P.S.- Beware of guy nudity