Sweet baby Jesus, we thank you for blessing Will Ferrell and Adam McKay with the talent to create a NASCAR comedy as hilarious as Talladega Nights. The so-called "Ballad of Ricky Bobby" is hardly flawless in fact it's not always firing on all cylinders but with comedy star Ferrell and director McKay still hot from the success of their previous comedy hit Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, most of this 108-minute spoof of oval-track racing is so knee-slappin' funny that you can't help but surrender to the stupidity.  |
Obviously, Ferrell's the shining star, and his portrayal of lead-footed pit-crew-member-turned-#1 NASCAR champion Ricky "I Wanna Go Fast" Bobby (how can you not love that name?) is spot-on perfect, righteously spoofing the entirety of NASCAR culture without insulting its oft-ridiculed roots in redneck bootlegging of a bygone era. You could even argue that Talladega Nights is truer to NASCAR than Tom Cruise's Days of Thunder, and it's certainly more entertaining, especially when you add John C. Reilly as Ricky's life-long pal, teammate, and eventual rival Cal Naughton, Jr. (together they're nicknamed "Shake 'n Bake"), and Sacha Baron Cohen (from Da Ali G Show and Borat) as gay French "Formula Un" driver-turned NASCAR rival Jean Girrard, to a stellar cast including Molly Shannon, Greg Germann, Amy Adams and Michael Clarke Duncan. Sure, it's mostly a showcase for Ferrell's loud, over-the-top antics and nonsensical non sequiturs (like cameo appearances by Elvis Costello and Mos Def), but with Ferrell behind the wheel, Talladega Nights rolls into victory lane with fuel to spare, and there's one final bit of comedy (with a tip of the hat to William Faulkner) for those who sit through the credits. --Jeff Shannon Stills from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby(click for larger image) More NASCAR and Talladega Nights at Amazon.com 
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 I Loved This Movie and I Don't Watch Nascar! |
| Review Date: August 4, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Monkdude, Hampton, Virginia |
| Everybody in my theater was cracking up throughout the entire movie. This is my favorite Will Ferrell movie by far. He really nails the part and doesn't abuse his comic gifts. John C. Reilly as his best bud, Gary Cole as his wacky father, and the french rival, played by Sacha Baron Cohen, are great as well. I really haven't had this much fun watching a comedy at the theater in a long time, there are just so many lines that are destined to become classic. I will be adding this one to my DVD collection for sure. |
I love this movie
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| Review Date: July 29, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Pacificskye, Cambria, CA |
| It just cracks me up. I love Ferrell, and the rest of the cast. Thought they did a good job. It was funny, but had some good points to make. I just like it a lot. |
Funny all the way through
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| Review Date: December 28, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Chess Buddhist, Long Beach, California |
First, this is not an elongated Saturday Night Live sketch like so many Will Ferrell movies. It is also in no way offensive to NASCAR fans, though judging by some of the reviews it seems fans want to get offended anyway. There isn't a single joke in this movie that makes fun of NASCAR racing. Pretty much all the jokes are about Ricky Bobby and his flawed character.
I thought I would get one or two laughs from this movie, but I found a good dozen or so belly laughs here. Some of the physical humor will just make you bawl with laughter. Good script with great jokes and funny performances combine for a perfect comedy. |
the funniest movie
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| Review Date: February 5, 2010 |
| Reviewer: , |
I have seen many movies in my day and some have been good then some were just straight out horrible, but Talladega nights the ballad of Ricky Bobby is probably one of the best movies I have ever seen.
This is mainly about this guy who grew up wanting to be a racecar driver. He basically lives by one phrase `If your not first your last', that is what his dad said one day at career day at his school. Eventually later on in his racing days he gets in a bad wreck and is in the hospital for a while, and closer to the end he drives again.
The whole thing could have been made just a comedy film, but unfortunately they made it more than that.
The best part was when they get the car to flip and roll to make it look like a actual nascar wreck. The way that they made the stuff look real was truly amazing. Any movie could have just made a car flip, but they did more with it. Added with sparks and other special effect features like the guy who went on the grass and kept spinning and after he gets done with it there was a picture or portrait of him.
The funniest part has to be when he gets out of his car and thought that he had caught on fire. So, he gets out of his racing suit and all he has on is his helmet, shoes, and underwear. So, after he gets out of his suit he runs to the fence on the turn of the raceway as he gets there he is saying all kinds of random things, but once he gets to the top he lays down and rolls to the bottom saying `Stop drop and roll!' Finally, they convinced him that he was alright, but to know more you will have to watch the movie.
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lots of laughs
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| Review Date: August 7, 2006 |
| Reviewer: I. Alonso, lopez, wa, United States |
| If you liked/loved There's Something about Mary, Wedding Crashers, 40 Year Old Virgin, etc., I think you'll laugh at the scenes/jokes in this movie. It's very funny & actually worth the price of a movie-theater ticket! |
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