Review of Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007) by Christopher C — 12 Apr 2011

Judd Apatow's film WALK HARD: The Dewey Cox Story is an often hilarious send-up of rock music biographies, with more than a little inspiration from Forrest Gump. The film's hero, played by John C. Reilly, is a combination of Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Brian Wilson and other oldies figures. He is born to a poor Southern family and grows up at the dawn of rock 'n' roll. He has a shaky early marriage and a brush with the law, but constantly reinvents himself with the changing times. We witness this manchild stumble through every musical fad of the late 20th century, from Bob Dylan folk to psychadelia, 1970s rock and disco and ultimately hip-hop, as well as every drug and fashion trend.

The sheer amount of laugh out loud moments and often obscure musical humour make it something other than your standard lowbrow Hollywood comedy. The acting of John C. Reilly as Cox and Tim Meadows as his drummer is solid, but a nice element is the deliberate miscasting of the celebrities that Dewey Cox meets. When he encounters the Beatles in India, for example, the comedy comes from just how bad Jack Black and Jason Schwartzman impersonate Paul MacCartney and Ringo Starr.

If you're familiar with the early history of American rock music, WALK HARD is a probably a film that you'll probably enjoy. I'm not in a hurry to see it again, but I'm happy I spent a couple of hours seeing it.