Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

"Talledega Nights"is just like every other Will Ferrell movie; even though it has hilarious parts, it just can't go the full mile to make a good comedy. Ferrell has loomed large over the comedic landscape over the past few years. He made his leap from funny supporting actor (a la "The Ladies' Man) to engaging superstar in "Old School." A few months later, Ferrell was back to star in "Anchorman," a jocular romp that had its moments but not its hour and thirty-five minutes. With "Talledega Nights," Ferrell is back to make...well....a remake of his previous films. The plot to these movies are not important--as long as it can be an overall excuse for Ferrell to indulge his weird brand of comedy in small skit-like snippets.

Ferrell plays Ricky Bobby, a southerner, who from birth, dreamt of being the fastest. He rises to the highest echelon of race drivers and is endorsed by Wonder Bread and Fig Newtons. In between boring race scenes, Ferrell and his buddies relentlessly parody the stupidity and uselessness of NASCAR culture. His family eats KFC and Taco Bell. His sons are named Walker and Texas Ranger, respectively. By the way, the segments dealing with the two sons are among the funniest in the movie. Let's just say that they have quite a pair of mouths on them.

At the apex of his career, Ricky Bobby is challenged by a stereotypically French driver aptly played by Ali G. Ricky competes with the Frenchman and eventually gets in a car crash. The recovery time provides ample opportunity for Ferrell to conduct his ridiculousness---"I am paralyzed!" or "Nothing is more scary than driving with a damn cougar in the car." The ending is what you expect, maybe with a surprise or two.

All in all, "Talledega Nights" is a good but not great comedy. As always, Ferrell carries the movie with his unavoidable sense of humor and charm. I may have liked "Anchorman" a little bit more. Then again, the jokes are the same in both movies. The question is: what's next for Will Ferrell? He has conquered the "I am funny because I commit to absurdity" genre. I would like to see Ferrell in a more artsy movie, where the script and directing is of more quality (maybe an independent movie). Until then, we are at least guaranteed cheap laughs.

3.5