Talladega Nights: The Ballard of Ricky Bobby (www.the-usher.com)

"I'm going fast"

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.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good.

BONUS FEATURES

Commentary with the Director and Friends
Director Adam McKay and actor Ian Roberts provide a comedic and very funny commentary. The pair tries and put the movie in to context and compares it to other movies, not even from the same genre. This is the same throughout as neither of them takes it seriously and with a few specials guest popping up, this is a great commentary that matches the zaniness of the movie.

Deleted and Extended Scenes
Entitled 'Going for the Win', 'I'm hot, 'Little sticker on the windshield', 'Ricky in hospital', 'Gas money', 'Jenga scene (Extended)', 'What you do today', 'Cal call Ricky (TV Room V.I.) and 'Return to garage', these deleted and extended scenes suffer from the lack of a commentary track or introduction.

Gag Reel (2.21 mins)
Watch Will Farrell and the rest of the cast adlib their lines for multiple takes and have real fun doing so. Adam McKay's Video Diaries Entitled 'Directors', 'Cameos', 'Live Cougar', 'Driving school', 'Deleted scenes' and 'Talladega', follow the director through the making of 'Talladega Nights'. These behind the scenes video reveal the amount of fun they had on the set and how funny Will Farrell actually is.

Will Farrell returns to Talladega (5.27 mins)
Watch the star return to the racetrack to promote the movie, meet the real drivers, start the race and been involved with the press conferences.

Ricky and Cal's Commercials (1.32 mins)
Watch Ricky Bobby try and sell you hunting knives, candy, pork rinds and Big Red

Bonus Race Footage (1.15 mins)
Watch a montage of all the race footage recorded for the movie

Line-O-Rama (5.17 mins)
Watch the cast adlib different version of the same line, each one as funny as the last.

Walker and Texas Ranger (5.31 mins)
Watch Houston Tumlin and Grayson Russell perform their lines as Ricky Bobby's mischievous sons Auditions Watch Houston Tumlin and Grayson Russell, Leslie Bibb, Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch audition for their roles.

Trailers
Watch previews of 'Click', 'Gridiron Gang', 'Open Season', 'Casino Royale' and 'Little Man'

OVERALL

With a very funny commentary, amusing deleted scenes and much more, the DVD treatment for 'Talladega Nights' is up to the usual Sony standards. While a few more interviews with the cast would have been welcome, this is a good package and one that should please fans.

DVD

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

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2006