Talladega Nights - The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

This was actually better than I'd expected. I'm not a NASCAR fan, but Will Farrell does on occasion make me laugh.

And laugh I did. Ricky Bobby (Will Farrell) is a born race car driver who becomes a champion, until an accident leaves him psychologically unable to race again. John C. Reilly plays his sidekick, always coming in second, helping Ricky Bobby win. Will Farrell's over-the-top goofiness was toned town a bit--a small bit, which for me made the movie funnier, because I was laughing at the lines and situations rather than at Will Farrell.

NASCAR is lavishly lampooned, but in such an extravagant and good-humored way that I doubt fans would be offended--the movie takes the stereotypes and runs with them. And there are a couple of subplots that keep the movie interesting--Ricky Bobby's kids are uncontrolled brats until his mother takes them in hand; he has to deal with betrayal and the consequences of his treatment of his best friend; there's love lost and found; and the commitment-phobic father who set him on the path to racing returns to put him back on track (heh. pun. sorry.) with hilarious training tactics.

Jane Lynch and Gary Cole as Ricky Bobby's parents have the best roles, I think--funny, but low-key. The kids were over-the-top both when they were obnoxious and when they were reformed, but that, oddly enough, kept them from getting on my nerves.

We watched this with our sons, ages 12 & 16, and there were a couple of sexual references, but nothing that made me cringe. They were amused, and quoted lines from the movie for quite a while afterward.

It wasn't a great movie, by any means, but it was an entertaining way to spend a couple of hours, and a good excuse to eat buttered popcorn.

This movie was just not funny. Not even stupid funny. It was more insulting on many different levels. I wonder if the screen writer is Jewish, because they have a thing for making fun of everything Christian. I know it's a comedy but it seems a lot of Jews go out of their way to bash Jesus and Christianity. For example Sarah Silverman, Family Guy, American Dad among others. Some things that absolutely made no sense whatsoever. First, Ricky Bobby is kicked out of his own house by his ex-wife and best friend with their two sons. Imagine a divorce court that gives all the wealth, houses, cars, etc. and absolutely no child support for the parent who has custody. Second, the French guy assaults and breaks the arm of Ricky Bobby. No law suit for taking his livelihood. No arrest. No deportation. Also the token black guy bit.

I bought this for my son who's 15 and a big fan of Will Ferrell. He already owns the DVD but likes having movies to travel with his PSP. This is one of his favorite movies and full of great laughs.

Another funny movie with the comedy of Will Ferrell. Ricky Bobby used to have it all, then a French racer, Jean beats him. His wife leaves him for his best friend. So, Ricky and his two sons have to go live at his mom's house. Ricky dad shows up after 25 years to train him to race again. Ricky and Jean have a rematch. If you love racing, comedy, and Will Ferrell, you'll love TALLADEGA NIGHTS: THE BALLAD OF RICKY BOBBY!!!

This was not to my liking. Not my type of film, or humor. I watched about thirty minutes of it, or less. I found it inane and a waste of my time.