‘Walk Hard’ is a fun
farce full of laughs

At the Movies
By Senitra Horbrook

The story of Dewey Cox might sound familiar.
A tragic incident leads to musical inspiration for a youngster. That young man finds success as a musician, which also leads to a life of sex, drugs, jail and rehab. That should sound similar to the plots of Walk the Line and Ray because no stone is left unturned when it comes to satirizing the music biopic genre in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
While it satirizes the movies, it does not insult the artists those films are based on.
That’s due in part to 2008 Golden Globe-nominated actor John C. Reilly (known most for playing second banana to Will Ferrell in Talladega Nights), who takes on the role of fictional musician Dewey Cox with extreme earnestness. If you’ve seen Chicago or A Prairie Home Companion, you know Reilly can sing. He gets a starring role, the chance to showcase his voice and show off his comedic chops.
The jokes in Walk Hard are pretty relentless in pushing the boundaries of humor. The film follows Dewey all the way from his childhood in Alabama in the 1940s to the present. Young Dewey (Conner Rayburn) accidentally cuts his brother in half while they are playing with machetes. After the doctor tells the family that this is a particularly bad case of cutting someone in half and he’s not going to make it, Dewey’s father proclaims that "the wrong kid died."
Dewey channels the hurt of losing his brother and rejection from his father into music. At 14, Dewey leaves home with his 12-year-old girlfriend Edith (Kristen Wiig) to pursue a music career.
Dewey hits it big and meets the lusty, busty Darlene (Jenna Fischer from TV’s The Office and Blades of Glory), who gives him second thoughts about his marriage and family with Edith. He also gets introduced to nearly every drug on the planet in a funny, ongoing part of the movie where his drummer (played by former Saturday Night Live member Tim Meadows) tries to convince him how bad drugs are by telling Dewey how good they make you feel.
The cameos in Walk Hard are also great and will be appreciated, especially by those who have seen writer/producer Judd Apatow’s other movies. One of the film’s funniest scenes is when The Beatles (played by Jack Black as Paul McCartney, Paul Rudd as John Lennon, The "Mac" guy Justin Long as George Harrison and Jason Schwartzman as Ringo Starr), introduce Dewey to LSD. They seriously could have a whole movie of their own.
The music is as big a part of the movie as the jokes. The title track Walk Hard is particularly catchy. Then, try not to laugh too hard during Let’s Duet (sounds more like Let’s Do It) sung by Dewey and Darlene, otherwise you’ll miss the double-entendre lines like "In my dreams you’re blowing me — some kisses."
Walk Hard also pushes the boundaries of raunchiness during a scene where there is full-frontal male nudity. It’s pretty shocking, even if you’re expecting it.
Judd Apatow is Hollywood’s current "it guy" when it comes to comedy. Based on his previous string of hits (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Superbad), expectations for Walk Hard are pretty high among his fans. With the film co-written and directed by Jake Kasdan, he and Apatow make funny look pretty darn easy in Walk Hard. ••
Movie Grade: B+