Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Movie Information:

Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Directed by: Adam McKay Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Written by: Will Ferrell, Adam McKay Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Cast: Leslie Bibb, Sascha Baron Cohen, Gary Cole, Michael Clarke Duncan, Will Ferrell, Jane Lynch, John C. Reilly

Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) U.S. Distributor: Columbia Pictures Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) U.K. Distributor: Sony Pictures

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Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Synopsis:

The film tells the story of NASCAR stock car racing sensation Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) whose "win at all costs" approach has made him a national hero. He and his loyal racing partner, childhood friend Cal Naughton Jr. (John C. Reilly), are a fearless duo -- dubbed "Thunder" and "Lightning" by their fans for their ability to finish so many races in the #1 and #2 positions, with Cal always in second place. When a flamboyant French Formula One driver, Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen), challenges the "Thunder" and "Lightning" for the supremacy of NASCAR, Ricky Bobby must face his own demons and fight Girard for the right to be known as racing's top driver.

Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) Movie Review:

For all of his life Ricky Bobby (Ferrell) has wanted to go fast and when he gets the chance to drive in NASCAR, he quickly become the number one driver on the circuit. With his best friend Cal Naughton, Jr. (Reilly) as his teammate, the pair would shake and bake their way to first and second in every race making them the superstars of the sport. With his gorgeous wife Carley (Bibb), his sons Walker and Texas Ranger and more money than he could ever spend, Ricky Bobby was on top of the world but his record was always going to attract attention. Now ex-Formula One champion Jean Girrard (Baron Cohen) has come from France to challenge Ricky Bobby for his title.

There are two types of movie comedy fans, those who love Will Farrell and those who hate him but can ‘Talladega Nights: The Ballard of Ricky Bobby’ make everyone like him?

Ex-Saturday Night Live star Will Farrell rise to superstardom has been swift. After years as a supporting actor who made memorable appearances in ‘Austin Powers’, ‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back’, ‘Zoolander’ and ‘Old School’, his big break came in 2003 with ‘Elf’. He followed that up with ‘Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy’ and a comedy superstar was born. He was now the leader of the new ‘Frat Pack’ and along with Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Steve Carell, Luke Wilson and Vince Vaughn they ushered in a new wave of comedy that appealed to a much wider audience but had its own unique style. With other hits like ‘Wedding Crashers’, ‘The Forty Year Old Virgin’ and ‘You, Me and Dupree’, the Frat Pack have established themselves as the kings of comedy but ‘Talladega Nights: The Ballard of Ricky Bobby’ might just make them lose their throne.

Many comedians make their name by playing essentially the same style of character again and again and Will Farrell is one of those comedians. Ricky Bobby is another incarnation of Buddy from ‘Elf’ or Ron Burgundy from ‘Anchorman’, a dumb but lovable character who beats the odds to win the day. Every character he plays also manages to remove all of his clothing and have some kind of nervous breakdown or loss of confidence that he has to overcome. While this was funny for the first few times you saw it, it is now getting a little stale and repetitive.

Even though Will Farrell might just be playing the same character over and over again, there are some actors who are creating something new and displaying talents that you might never realised they had. Dramatic actor John C. Reilly steals the film as Ricky’s best friend Cal Naughton, Jr. As Ricky’s NASCAR racing teammate, it is their ‘Shake and Bake’ partnership that makes them the fastest pair on the circuit, with Ricky Bobby always coming first and Cal coming second. If you think Ricky Bobby is dumb then Cal Naughton, Jr. is just plain stupid but John C. Reilly makes him instantly loveable and the highlight of the film. Best known for his TV work on hit series like ‘The West Wing’ and ‘Midnight Caller’, Gary Cole proves again that he has a gift for comedy. After appearing in the big screen versions of ‘The Brady Bunch’, Cole returns to comedy as Ricky’s father Reese Bobby and really has fun with the drunken waster.

The rest of the supporting cast don’t fair as well however, with Michael Clarke Duncan struggling with comedy as Ricky’s Pit Boss Lucius Washington, the talented Leslie Bibb having nothing to do but look attractive and act greedy as Ricky wife Carley and a star in waiting Amy Adams wasting her time as Ricky’s assistant Susan. David Koechner and Jane Lynch are also underused. The biggest waste however is Sacha Baron Cohen as NASCAR newest star Jean Girrard. While the talented British comedian of Ali G and Borat fame tries his best with the material, the French, gay racing driver is a little too stereotypical and uncreative to make any real impression.

‘Talladega Nights: The Ballard of Ricky Bobby’ is another Will Farrell movie that just rehashes the same simple plot of dumb makes good, loses everything and then come back to win the day. Even his fans must be getting bored with this by now and might have finally figured out that he is just a one trick pony.

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Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006) review written by: Jamie Kelwick