Ricky Bobby, roi du circuit

If you're in the right mood, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby is absolutely hilarious. This NASCAR parody takes plenty of laps around the track of ridiculousness in order to get some laughs. It's obvious that Adam McKay just let the actors do and say whatever they wanted take after take until he found something he thought was funny. And there are plenty of quotable moments from this movie. That being said, this movie is an acquired taste, and the outlandish story & acting are sure to annoy some. I was glad to ride with Ricky Bobby once again, but I didn't find it as funny as I used to.

Will Ferrell and John C Reilly at their best. Arguably the two's greatest collaboration in the fierce, fast and extremely funny Talladega Nights, which teaches us all, in life, if you ain't first... you're last.

Ricky, a NASCAR racing sensation, is the number one racer in the world. After Jean beats him in a race and becomes the top racer, Ricky tries to regain his dominance.

The full title adding 'The Ballad of Ricky Bobby' - Talladega Nights referencing the city of Alabama and its famous Superspeedway, a landmark of NASCAR racing and a site where champions are made. Will Ferrell and Adam McKay (whom also directs) write the film; the script is hilarious, unforgettable scenes are overrun by unforgettable lines in what will have you attempting to ask someone what is the "capital of North Carolina" in a rich Eastern American accent - the writing matches the enthusiasm of all the cast, a signature role for Jack McBrayer and David Koechner as well as Sacha Baron Cohen and Amy Adams showing their versatility in acting alongside Ferrell and Reilly who seemingly bounce off one another and the vibrancy on screen appears almost improvised.

The storyline is lacking any severe quality, but ultimately, it has no right to, the film advertises a comedy and it successfully makes an audience laugh while also keeping them engrossed in the picture. The anti-climax of Gary Cole's return to Jane Lynch and the grandkids, as well as Amy Adams' rise to prominence prove comforting and sentimental moves that even surprise us viewers, but what doesn't, is that McKay and Ferrell strike a beauty - one of their finest, one of a kind.

108 minutes of sensational entertainment.

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby is rather significant. Why? Because it is the first team up of Will Farrell and John C. Reily on the big screen. Released in 2006, Talladega Nights was released at a great time. Back when Will Farrell was at his height in the film industry and back when NASCAR was pretty popular. It only seemed that a movie should be made in hopes of making lots of money. And it did. Talladega Nights had a budget of $72.5 million and made back over double that amount. For the longest time I thought that Step Brothers was the better team up but since my opinion has slightly changed over that film alone, will Talladega Nights see a change in opinion?

Ricky Bobby has lived his whole life by the motto of "If you ain't first, you're last". Ricky Bobby is also a NASCAR driver and possibly the best there is. When a new race driver named Jean Girard comes to race, it seems that Ricky has met his match. A wreck occurs and Ricky is thought to be done with racing, but the Talladega race is coming around the corner, and Ricky wants to race. But most importantly, win.....

Again, for the longest time, I always saw Step Brothers as the better Reily and Ferrell film. But that has changed. I am not saying that this is leaps and bounds better than Step Brothers. I like Step Brothers and I like this film. But this film is not really a piece of art. The acting is fine. The actors feel right in their respective roles and to a point that I honestly forgot that Will Ferrell does not have a southern accent. Oscar worthy? No, considering the tough competition and what not, but still good. The characters themselves are fine too. They mostly follow the typical sterotypes which is something that some people say made NASCAR look bad. But, they all have chemistry and are loads of fun to watch. Especially Reily and Ferrell which is great that they did Step Brothers together. The story is considerably better in this film than Step Brothers as it is more complex and has an actual plot and what not. The comedy is good. Whereas Step Brothers took the really potty mouth approach, Talladega Nights is not quite as potty mouth with it's humor. Again, it is that dumb smart humor which actually works best in this film. Almost because it is a sort of satire in a way. I found myself laughing more than in Step Brothers which was the big deal about me changing my mind about how this film compares to Step Brothers. Not nearly as quotable as Step Brothers, but just the scenes by themselves are memorable.

Talladega Nights is a funny film. Some prefer Step Brothers over this film which is fine. If you are a fan of Will Ferrell and/or racing, this film should entertain you.

When looking at the merits of a movie and decide whether it is good or not, one must think of the goal of the picture. Is it a serious film, designed to comment on society, or is the movie's job to merely entertain? I think we all know the answer to this one when it comes to Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. This movie's goal is to entertain the audience, make them laugh, make them spend an hour and a half rejoicing in talented comedians doing their job well. And this movie reached its goal. Not only is this movie an above-average sports movie (it even concludes with a big race and a warm and fuzzy winner!), but is also a very funny movie. All I had to do was listen to the reaction of the sold out theater I was in and I knew that most people will find this movie to be very funny. Will Ferrell is Ricky Bobby, a NASCAR driver who makes up one half of "Shake and Bake," with John C. Reilly's Cal Naughton, Jr. being the "Bake" half of the duo. They are childhood friends who have now become teammates on the top NASCAR level, where Cal sets up the play that lets Ricky win almost every race--that is, unless Ricky has already crashed out of it. Talladega Nights follows the same story arc that Days of Thunder did, but is far more entertaining, as Ferrell and Reilly work together to bring humor to all parts of the racer's lives, including a bizarre dinner ritual that includes corporate sponsorship. Sure, the movie slows down for about 20 minutes in the middle to develop plot, but that may have been designed to give us, the audience, a break, allowing us to get ready for the final scenes of the movie. Sacha Baron Cohen (aka Ali G, Borat) plays the French Formula 1 driver who threatens to oust Ricky Bobby as the best driver on the track, perhaps the funniest overall character in the movie. There is not one scene with Cohen in it that isn't funny. After watching this movie, it is clear why Will Ferrell takes his comedies so seriously (watch the extras on the Elf DVD to see Ferrell between scenes, he's not always "on" playing the clown on set)--he gets the results he's looking for. This movie is laugh-out-loud funny pretty much from start to finish, and seeing Gary Cole return to comedy as Ricky Bobby's father will bring back memories of Office Space for a moment, then this new character will win you over.

This movie does something that is rarely done successfully done, pokes fun at the modern NASCAR circuit. Without detailing all the gags, this is pure fun which doesn't offend the tastes too often. Will Farrell is patently absurd as Ricky Bobby & the support he receives in this film from the entire cast is excellent. Gary Cole is very solid as Ricky's dad, & so is Jane Lynch as his mom. Amy Adams is solid too. In fact, the entire cast including John C. Reilly seems to have been fit into their roles like gloves.

Sasha Cohen comes off better in this as Ricky Bobbys French nemesis than he does in even Borat. He is used perfectly & fits his role really well. The story line works really well as the evolution from speed too shake & bake too magic man & me helps keep the film focused on something besides the jokes. There is just enough plot to hang the jokes on.

The script is lots of fun with references to lots of things besides NASCAR & Sex (which is all too often the only thing done as comedy today). This film proves that outrageous is much better than sex when done right as comedy. Thank goodness this is much better than the ill conceived BETWITCHED Farrell did in 2005. This film is really an excellent showcase for everyone involved. If your a NASCAR fan, you should even get some extra fun out of this one.

Get ready for the checkered flag Ricky Booby, this film is a winner all the way.