The musical-biography formula is so powerful that it drags down even a spoof of these movies.
The silly fun of “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story” starts to wear just as the poverty-fame-drugs-redemption cycle hits the inevitable hippie/psychedelic period. The same-old-story quality that “Walk Hard” sends up begins to apply to it as well.
**1/2 RATING | Biopic Parody
“Walk Hard” was directed by Jake Kasdan (“Orange County”) and written by Kasdan and current Hollywood comedy king Judd Apatow (“Superbad”). Like most comedies attached to Apatow, it seems about 20 minutes too long. And brevity is key to a broad parody.
The first part of the film, which pokes fun at the too- similar arcs of biopics such as “Walk the Line” and “Ray,” elicits laughs if also some unease.
When a young Dewey (Conner Rayburn) and his brother play with machetes, the movie takes the family-tragedy aspect of music biopics to ridiculous extremes.
Once John C. Reilly takes over the role as the teenage Dewey, “Walk Hard” becomes, for a stretch, irresistibly goofy fun. When Dewey performs the innocent “Take My Hand,” the crowd goes nuts, the girls screaming and writhing as if this Brylcreemed lug were Elvis and the Beatles combined.
Dewey settles down with a nice girl (a delightfully dour Kristen Wiig).
But the pressure is on for these lovebirds. Marriage and parenthood have caused the teenagers to look practically middle-aged.
“Walk Hard” hits every rock-biopic milestone, from Dewey’s revelatory audition at a Sun Records-like label to his inevitable introduction to drugs to his tortured “friendship” with good-girl backup singer Darlene, played by Jenna Fischer.
Despite a lowbrow approach that entails broad cultural stereotypes and egregiously gratuitous male nudity, “Walk Hard” maintains at least a suggestion of class. That’s mostly because of Reilly. Having gotten his Frat Pack feet wet in “Talladega Nights,” the versatile supporting actor makes the most of his starring role in a big studio film.
Reilly sells the comedy by playing it straight. He sings quite well, bringing passion to performances of surprisingly good songs that stylistically traverse Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan and Brian Wilson.
Kasdan gives the picture a polished look to go with its polished sound. A backlit scene of Dewey and Darlene on stage looks like one between Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix in “Walk the Line.”
Dewey puts Darlene through the wringer with his hard walking, drinking, drugging and womanizing. But Fischer, finally getting some good lighting after years on “The Office,” at least gets to look especially pretty here. Game enough for the naughty moments, Fischer still looks virtuous enough to pull off her character’s come-here- go-away act with Dewey.
Tim Meadows’ running bit as Dewey’s drummer and drug buddy is so good that you wish Kasdan and Apatow had let it stand at a few scenes.
But like its protagonist, for whom aspirin probably was a gateway drug, “Walk Hard” doesn’t know when to quit.
“Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story”
R for sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and language. 1 hour, 40 minutes. Directed by Jake Kasdan. Written by Kasdan and Judd Apatow. Starring John C. Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Tim Meadows, Kristen Wiig, Chris Parnell, Margo Martindale and Raymond J. Barry. Opens today at area theaters.
