Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (Blu-ray Disc, 2006, Unrated)

Though it is one of America's most popular sporting events, the association of NASCAR with uneducated, backwards rednecks seems cemented into the American consciousness. So the brilliant comedy TALLADEGA NIGHTS: THE BALLAD OF RICKY BOBBY, is not just a sidesplitting series of slapstick pratfalls and over-the-top accents, but a lens into an important part of American culture. Comic sensation Will Ferrell (SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, ANCHORMAN) plays the title character, Ricky Bobby, a figure who is at once laughably ridiculous, infuriating, and loveable. Ricky Bobby, with his bleached-blond wife, cute sons Walker and Texas Ranger, and dim-bulb sidekick Cal (award-winning actor John C. Reilly, flexing his considerable comedic muscle), has got it made. He is NASCAR's most popular driver, and nearly every aspect of his life is endorsed by a recognizable product. Yet his racetrack kingdom is not unshakeable: two formidable opponents, his unpleasable father, Reese (Gary Cole), and a flashy new opponent, the openly gay French import Jean (played by a hilarious Sasha Baron Cohen, known to millions as Ali G), threaten to hijack his crown and expose his vulnerabilities. Though many of the jokes are easy laughs (having Ferrell run around shirtless is a guaranteed guffaw-fest), the script (co-written by Farrell and Adam McKay) is nuanced and intelligent, lending its characters much more sympathy and complexity than dumber comedies are want to do. And every performer--from Ferrell to Amy Adams (as Susan, Bobby’s fawning assistant)--tackles his or her part with joy and relish. A knee-slapper with smarts and savvy, TALLADEGA NIGHTS ensures Ferrell’s position as one of comedy's shining talents.

Wow is this movie funny, it's a guaranteed laugh fest!!!

Will Ferrell, Sacha Baron Cohen, Micheal Clarke Duncan, David Koechner, and Amy Adams are great, as is the rest of the cast.

This movie isn't as funny as I thought it'd be, but it's still pretty funny. The surprising thing to me was how much I enjoyed the actual movie and the story behind it.

All in all this is one of Will Ferrells best pictures, and it's one that I can watch again and again.

Final Verdict:

5/5

Rent or Buy?: If you're a Will Ferrell/Nascar fan, this movie belongs in your collection.

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The movie itself isn't great but has a few really funny moments.

I got this FREE with my PS3. Thank goodness, because the quality of this
Blu-Ray is horrible. I literally have DVDs that look better in 480p than
this BD does in 1080i. I'm puzzled as to why Sony would pack this into the
first batch of PS3s when it does absolutely nothing to make high-def look
like high def. They should have used Stealth. Avoid this at all costs.
I sold mine, it's not worth having in my collection, even for free.

I have never found NASCAR to be the least bit interesting, but as an outsider with a limited knowledge of the sport, I found Talladega Nights to be absolutely hilarious. Just don't waste the extra money on the Blu-ray if you happen to already have an HD upconvert dvd player, the transfer quality isn't that the best.

The movie itself is hilarious as most Will Ferrell movies are. If you enjoyed any of his previous films or get a kick out of his type of slapstick humor, then definitely pick up this movie.

WARNING!!!

This movie is graded as a low standard HD movie. What that means is that if you buy this movie expecting that the extra money you spent for HD quality will pay off with astounding video, you will have just wasted all your hard earned cash. Talladega nights has great HD audio, but poor HD video so your movie will appear about the same as a standard DVD. If you're getting this movie for the HD presentation, save your money and get a standard DVD of Talladega Nights and spend your money on Kingdom of Heaven or MI3 for true HDTV movie viewing experience.