"Walk Hard" - Laugh Harder

Last night, Mr. Monkey and I sat down to watch a movie. Together. In the same room at the same time. A minor miracle.

As it's been a while, we rented a few to choose from. When he asked me which I wanted to see, I said, "There Will Be Blood" because I've promised some of you a review of that for a while - see, I didn't forget! So he agreed, and I went for a drink, came back and settled in.

What he had ACTUALLY put in the DVD player was this: "Walk Hard".

I did protest, but I must be honest, not too much, because I'd be hoping to see this goofy rockstar biographical send-up for a while. It stars John C. Reilly; who is one of the most completely under-rated actor/singer/dancers in the business. If this were the 1920s, John Reilly would be the star Vaudevilian of his day. The man's an entertainer.

He blew me away years ago with his small role in "Chicago" and I pay attention whenever he shows up on screen. His biggest film recently was "Talladega Nights: The Legend of Ricky Bobby" which I also enjoyed so much, probably because he and pal/ co-star Will Ferrell seemed to be having such a ridiculously good time making it.

This film is the story of 'the greatest American rock star who never lived' named Dewey Cox. Even his name lets you in on the jokes from the very beginning. It's a mockumentary chronicling the life and hard times of a dull-witted musician who fumbles (and screws and drinks and gets high) through the various decades of the music business, trying to navigate his way around new music styles and keep his band and his family and himself intact. Obvious allusions to "Walk the Line" and "Ray" are sprinkled throughout.

Producer (Apatow -"40 Year Old Virgin"; "Knocked Up" and "Superbad") and director (Jake Kasdan - Lawrence's son, who worked with Apatow on "Freaks and Geeks") with Reilly and cast have together achieved a harmony and precision in their level of sublime goofiness that the film is an absolute gem of base humour with a juvenile intellect.

One of my favourite silly-for-no-reason scenes include Dewey on the phone to his wife, trying to convince her he's still faithful, while in the background are nude bodies of the band and groupies laying around the hotel room. In a medium shot of Dewey on the phone is the torso of a man standing by his head, full-frontal, for an extended (pun intended) period of time... just for the giggles.

Terrific work by supporting actors, especially Jenna Fisher ('Pam' from NBC's "The Office") and Kristin Wiig (Saturday Night Live). It became a pause-and-play game for Mr. Monkey and I to spot and name all the SNL and "Office" actors popping up in the background.

My very, very favourite scene, though, had to be when Dewey Cox goes to India to meet with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi; and the Beatles.

Jack Black is Paul, Paul Rudd plays John, Jason Swartzman is Ringo and Justin Long plays George. Not anyone 's first pick from a casting perspective, but they are delightfully overblown in both their accents and parody of the Fab Four. Bloody funny if you ask me. (I'd love to see these guys do this for an entire movie; are you listening, Mr. Apatow??)

"Walk Hard" rocked hard for me, and I think I'm gonna give it 3 bananas.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooX8nHa5rrc