I recently watched Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story and in my opinion, it is one of the most underrated comedy film of the 2000s. Now it does have a fanbase, don’t get me wrong, but I believe this film should be as popular as films such as: Anchorman, Super Bad, and The 40-year-old Virgin.
To summarize, Walk Hard is a parody of the musician biopic genre, where movies such as Walk the Line and Ray fall. The film follows the life of fictional musician Dewey Cox. We watch as Dewey goes from being a farm boy living in a small town in Alabama to becoming one of the most famous and influential musicians of his time. Throughout his journey, Dewey Cox ends up interacting with some renowned musicians such as the Beatles, Buddy Holly, Jerry Garcia and more. During his career, Dewey Cox struggles with drug issues, intimacy issues and understanding who he truly is or wants to be. By the film’s end, Dewey Cox has realized the true meaning of life and is living a lifestyle that he is proud of.
John C. Reily stars as Dewey Cox and his performance is the best part of the film. Reily brings a lot to this character, and surprisingly makes the character seem like a real musician. But obviously, like he did in Step Brothers and Talladega Nights, Reily brings the right amount of goofiness to this role and physical comedy. Jenna Fischer, famous for playing Pam Beesly on The Office, also has an extremely funny performance as Dewey Cox’s love interest Darlene. On screen, these two have great chemistry when they’re portraying an outrageously funny and heartwarming relationship.
One part of this film that is just so damn good is the music. Since Dewey Cox is a musician, there are plenty of songs written specifically for the film. Some songs, although comical, are well performed and often sound and feel like the era they come from. Other songs are strictly comical, yet they are still extremely catchy. (You can listen to the full album on YouTube here). I honestly have four of these catchy tunes on my iPod.
This film is a comedy classic, so if you’re looking for another comedy to bust a gut to and you are a lover of music, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story is the film for you.