Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby : Movie Review


Talladega Nights (subtitled, The Ballad of Ricky Bobby) is, in many ways, just like every other Will Ferrell comedy: take some satire, add some hit-and-miss jokes, throw in a lightweight storyline, and let the lead actor be the catalyst that crystallizes these elements. Ferrell's ability to successfully fulfill that function is more dubious here than in his three best-known previous efforts, Old School, Elf, and Anchorman. The writing for those films was crisper, the humor less scattershot, and the overall effect more appealing. There are occasional moments of inspired comedy in Talladega Nights, but the film as a whole doesn't work. We're left ho-humming our way through one obligatory scene after another and wincing through a sting of failed gags until the next bit comes along that tickles our funny bone. It's a little like watching a current episode of Saturday Night Live (Farrell's showbiz alma mater) - you laugh a few times but, in the end, you wonder why you bothered.

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Author : James Berardinelli