Walk Hard (2007)

Yet another film from the Producer Judd Apatow's assembly line (Superbad, Knocked Up, 40 Year Old Virgin), Walk Hard may always be singled out as the first of his films to completely crash and burn at the box office. Was it because John C. Reilly couldn’t handle a leading role? Or the fact that it was a specific parody of a genre that is a self-parody in itself (The music bio)? Or was it because people just missed out?
Dewey Cox is scarred for life when his brother is accidentally killed in a friendly Machete Fight. Promising himself he’ll dedicate his life to being super double awesome, he walks hard, has fifty kids, and does every drug known to mankind. That’s only a small part in the epic movie tapestry that Walk Hard attempts to weave with song.

Walk Hard is a strange beast, a film that is mostly silly but often times awkwardly dramatic. It’s a weird mix that is funny in short bursts but doesn’t sustain itself in the long run. The fact that it concentrates its satire on the Johnny Cash centric Walk The Line, is a boon and a handicap at the same time. Some of the jokes are chuckle worthy but when they’re understood in the correct context (The Cash inspired sink breaking) they resound ten times funnier. It’s the peril of any kind of satire but director Jake Kasdan plows through it without missing a beat. It’s a shame that they don’t keep the joke quota as high as a classic Zucker brothers film. They repeat the same joke, again, and again until the laughs completely dry up. But even when the gags fall flat on their face, John C. Reilly is an amazing performer because he brings his dramatic acting chops give lines like “I want fifty thousand digeridoos!” Jenna Fischer sexes it up (Breasts!) as his on again off again wife. The rest of the cast is made up with a few big cameos (The Beatles scenes) and a laundry list of Appatown C-listers from the salad days when he was producing Anchorman, Freaks and Geeks, and Undeclared. The style of the film is also right on the money, with Jake Kasdan (Another Apatow directorial regular) giving everything a perfect glossy sheen. It's key to make a parody look as expensive as the original product and in this case, they pull it off.

The one thing the film does hit right on the note is the numerous songs. Instead of being nothing more than goofy breaks from the slapstick comedy they actually work as pieces of musical composition. Songs like “Walk Hard” and “Lets Duet” aren’t necessarily laugh out loud on the first listen, they grow on you, and the vocal performance on every track from Reilley never ceases to amaze.

Walk Hard lives off the strength of John C. Reilley’s performance and a dozen and a half extremely strong musical numbers. If they had thrown in a few more fresh jokes and slowed down the repetition they would have had a winner, but as it stands it’s a noble effort that will probably garner its own little cult following as the years roll by. Every night I’ll mouth a little prayer deep down in my heart that Mr. Reilly stars in every one of his films from now on.

DVD: The 2-Disc edition with it's SELF INDULGENT DIRECTOR'S CUT fleshes out the movie in every regard. The jokes may come even slower then before (Ouch), but at least the story flows easier which results in the film feeling shorter. The commentary by the whole gang is suprisingly calm with an actual serious discussion running through the whole film. The extras on DISC 2 shine in the Extended Musical scenes where we get over 40 mintues more songs, many not in the film, from the Reily himself. You may never want to hear a complete version of the Dylan parody "Royal Jelly", but at least it's there just in case.