Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007)

Okay, so it isn't the classiest movie you've ever seen. It's rude and crude and smutty and perverse. But it's also a well done and pretty clever parody of Walk the Line, the recent popular film that recounts the story of Johnny Cash, with a bit of Ray (the Ray Charles story), and a few other biopics of top musicians thrown in.

Young Dewey Cox (Conner Rayburn) is just a backwoods country boy, doted on by his mother (Margo Martindale) and detested by his father (Raymond J. Barry) who oft repeats, "The wrong kid died," in reference to Dewey's brother who died young in a tragic accident when Dewey was swinging a machette.

But Dewey grows up (John C. Reilly) to find music and women and battle drug abuse of all kinds and serve time in prison and arise to become a star.

But first he marries Edith (Kristen Wiig), his first sweetheart, who produces baby after baby after baby and endures Dewey's long stretches out of town on tour while constantly reminding him that he can't make it. And, of course, he has a major affair with Darlene (Jenna Fischer) and is lured into drug use by his friend Sam (Tim Meadows). He also seeks advice from the man he discovered him, Hassidic record executive L’Chai’m (Harold Ramis).

Lots of fun cameo roles here including Frankie Muniz as Buddy Holly, Jack Black as Paul McCartney, Paul Rudd as John Lennon, Jason Schwartzman as Ringo Starr, plus Eddie Vedder. Lyle Lovett, Jonah Hill, and others.

Directed by Jake Kasden who cowrote the script with Judd Apatow (who produced Superbad, The 40 Year Old Virgin, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, and many other goofy films and television shows).

Rated R for sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and language.

My personal rating: B-

Knocked Up (2007)

Parenthood

Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl) is a successful employee of E! TV who has just been promoted to an on-air personality. While celebrating at a club with her sister Debbie (Leslie Mann), she meets Ben Stone (Seth Rogen).

Ben is the total antithesis of anything and everything Alison could ever imagine as a romantic interest. He's a 23-year-old in a 33-year-old body with the attitude and interests of a 15-year-old. He and his pals, who are also his roommates (Jason Segel, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Martin Starr) are drinkin', dopin' slackers who run a website that discloses the minutes until nudity in popular films.

When Debbie gets called home due to her daughter's possible chicken pox, Alison decides to stay at the club because she's celebrating her promotion. In a weak moment, she has a one night stand with Ben.

Predictably, eight weeks later, she's on the phone to Ben to inform him of her pregnancy. Taken as off-guard as Alison was, Ben decides to make a commitment to Alison and the baby.

Judgemental, controlling sister Debbie doesn't think Alison should get involved with Ben. She feels her sister is worthy of so much more. Meanwhile, her own marriage to Pete (Paul Rudd) is rocky because Pete just doesn't measure up to Debbie's standards.

Can it work? back and forth it goes.

Directed by Judd Apatow. Loudon Wainwright III contributed original music and also appears as Alison's doctor. Additional credits include Joanna Kerns (as Alison’s Mom) and Harold Ramis (as Ben's Dad).

I rented this movie because it was on the Top 10 list of several respected critics, but once into it. I didn't like it. I didn't like it. I didn't like it. But, to be honest, by the end, I liked it, however the 2+ hour movie could have/should have used a judicious editing down to about 100 minutes or less. There was just too, too much demonstration of what lumps Ben and his friends were. Most of it quite unnecessary.

Katherine Heigl really is a beautiful woman in that Charlize Theron way. In fact, I kept thinking how good the two of them would be cast as sisters in a film someday.

Rated R for sexual content, drug use and language.