Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language, drug references and brief comic violence.
reviewed by Steven Harrell
Okay, all you Will Ferrell fans, it’s official: you can (finally) stop quoting “Anchorman.” Certainly, it has many funny and repeatable lines that can either be awkwardly thrown in to everyday conversation (“I immediately regret this decision!”) or just shouted randomly (“Hey everybody! Come see how good I look!”). But the former SNL cast member’s latest project is a similar vehicle for his wacky antics, zany improvisations, and random wit. It, too, offers a ton of funny lines to repeat afterwards with your friends. And, as usual for a Ferrell outing, it offers lots of crude content, as well.
Story
This time Will Ferrell is Ricky Bobby, a NASCAR driver with an unhealthy need to go fast. His father, Reese Bobby (Gary Cole), abandoned Ricky and his mother soon after Ricky was born in order to pursue his racing dreams. As a grown up, Ricky begins a racing career of his own, working on a pit crew for a driver who is completely comfortable in last place. In one race, his driver actually stops to eat a chicken sandwich during a pit stop.
The crew chief decides that someone needs to start driving or the whole team will lose their sponsorship, and Ricky Bobby decides his time has come. After placing third, it’s all downhill for the new racing sensation. Aided by his best friend and teammate Cal Naughton Jr. (John C. Reilly), Ricky becomes NASCAR’s number one driver. But his boss eventually decides that Ricky’s daredevil attitude is too much of a liability, so he brings in a gay French racer named Jean Girard (Ali G). Trying desperately to win against the excellent driver, Ricky is involved in a terrible crash and is humiliated in front of the whole country. After that he loses his wife, his home, and his racing sponsorship. Will Ricky be able to overcome his new fear of driving and re-claim his title, or will the pressures of always going fast finally catch up to him for good?
Verdict
The best thing about Will Ferrell is his outstanding ability to improvise. Unfortunately, that is also his film’s greatest downfall. When filmmakers work from a rough outline instead of an actual script the craftsmanship of a film almost always suffers. It’s difficult to cut together a seamless final product when no one on the set can be totally sure where any one scene is going to end up. In the end, “Talladega Nights” is really sub-par in terms of its technical and artistic qualities.
On the other hand, when a movie is as funny as this one is then none of that stuff particularly matters. To be clear, “Talladega Nights” is funny. Will Ferrell (“Elf,” “Anchorman”) provides his fans with the same unique, off-the-wall antics that have made him so popular. It’s possible that “Talladega” works even better than “Anchorman” just based on the fact that NASCAR is a much funnier subject than the nightly news.
A great thing about Ferrell though, is that he doesn’t hog all of the punch lines for himself. John C. Reilly (“The Aviator,” “Chicago”) is a character actor not really known for his comic ability, but he holds his own next to Ferrell. At times it feels like they’re not so much trying to make a movie as they are trying to see who can make the other laugh first. Ali G (real name Sacha Baron Cohen) delivers a solid performance as the French racer, with a spot-on accent and as much improv talent as anyone else in the cast. Also solid are Gary Cole (“Office Space”) as Ricky’s deadbeat dad and Leslie Bibb as Carley, Ricky’s so called “red-hot smoking wife.”
However, the film is very much rated PG-13. Mixed in with the moments of pure silliness are several sexual and drug related bits of humor, along with plenty of bad language. French racer Jean is openly gay; several scenes involve his “husband,” including one in which they kiss. Other questionable moments include Ricky and his wife making out in front of their whole family and several instances of children using profanity. Additionally, Ferrell and Co. irreverently argue over which form of Jesus they should be praying to. The way some people talk about Jesus, in general, is mocked and/or spoofed.
Worldview:
Silly movies like “Talladega Nights” are rarely concerned with expressing a crucial worldview. Still, it’s interesting to notice how the “all or nothing” approach Ricky takes to life leads to his ultimate downfall. Following his father’s motto that “if you’re not first, you’re last,” Ricky carelessly races with complete disregard for his safety, his sponsors, or the feelings of his best friend who always comes in second place.
The Bible offers its own sort of motto that is the complete opposite of Ricky’s. In Luke 13:30, Jesus is talking about the Day of Judgment and says that, “Indeed there are those who are last who will be first and first who will be last.” He’s getting at the idea that those who put themselves last by committing to serve everyone else first will be greatly rewarded for eternity. In other words, we’re in a race to be the last across the finish line. Sort of. I’m sure Ricky Bobby would have a hoot mangling that idea.
Questions:
• How did this movie compare to other Ferrell vehicles like “Elf” and “Anchorman”?
• Which do you enjoy more: seeing a Will Ferrell movie for the first time or watching it on DVD for the tenth time?
• Do you like NASCAR? Did your opinion of NASCAR make the film more or less enjoyable?
• Who was a funnier co-star: John C. Reilly as Cal or Ali G as Jean?
• Does all the crude content in a movie like this detract from your enjoyment of the film? Would the film be as funny without the crude stuff or making fun of some things Christians say and do? Would it be funnier with more of it?
• What do you think are the real-life problems that come from living by Ricky’s motto of “if you’re not first, you’re last”?
• What do you think are the real-life benefits that come from living by Jesus’ teaching that “the last shall be first and the first shall be last”?