There have been a number of successful, at least as measured by box-office and critical standards, biopics of legendary musicians in the last few years. Ray, Walk the Line and a handful of others have all followed a pretty standard formula. Talented young adult, tragic story, drug and alcohol abuse, redemption. It’s all very sentimental.
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story is just what was needed to have more than a little fun with that formula.
John C. Reilly stars as Dewey Cox. After slicing his brother in half at a young age, Cox turns to music to express himself and the pain he feels. That leads him on a career path that will see him have a number of hit records, a wife and several dozen children, heavy drug use, groupie-filled orgies, an encounter in India with The Beatles, a divorce, another marriage, a TV show and ultimately a shot at reclaiming his legacy.
If it doesn’t sound all that funny in the telling let me assure you that is is very funny in execution. Reilly is fantastic as Cox, a character that brings in a little Johnny Cash, a little Brian Wilson, a little Jim Morrison and a little of a handful of other musical icons whose stories have been told. It’s not quite on the level of something like Talladega Nights or Anchorman, mostly because without someone like Will Ferrell to play off of Reilly to often figuratively winks at the audience about how funny all this is.
Still, it’s well worth checking out as it’s a much needed lampooning of the musical biopic genre and all the emotional manipulation those movies bring with them.
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Chris Thilk