18. Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story(2007)
2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000. Every year this decade, a big name biopic has netted at least one Oscar for performance(Seriously, look that shit up).
I don't mind biopics. Some can be really, really good(see: Gandhi), but lately there has been an absolute glut of biopics. So I suppose it's good to see the shit shot out of them.
Walk Hard is brilliant in that instance. Everything you could possibly think that they would do in a biopic, they do in this movie. The terribly tragedy(slicing his brother in half with a machete), the choice to see how young an actor can play(in this instance, John C. Reilly starts playing Dewey at the age of 14), even the way the main character encounters important figures from that age.
That's one of the thing that really shines about Walk Hard. As Dewey Cox ages, he consistenly runs into the famous people of the era. The most chuckle-worthy being his encounter with an unintelligible, karate-chopping Elvis Presley(played by musician Jack White) and Dewey taking his band on a meditation trip to India with The Beatles(portrayed absurdly by Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Jason Schwartzman and Justin Long).
The music is equally amazing. Dewey's musical evolution from goofy pop singer(the sugary "Take My Hand" which incites a riot and people claiming it's the "devil's music") to bitter country superstar(the Johnny Cash-like "Guilty As Charged" underscoring a dark period in his life) to political folk singer(the offensive song of the people "Dear Mr. President" and the nonsensical Dylanesque "Royal Jelly"). The music perfectly reflects every musical biopic where all the music really means is "HERE IS THE YEAR."
And I would be remiss if I didn't mention John C. Reilly. Reilly is one of my favorite actors and the kind of actor I aspire to be. His ability to balance being an excellent comedic actor and an excellent dramatic actor is only enhanced by his incredible singing voice and great use as a go-to character actor. I don't even have to describe why I loved his performance of Dewey Cox. I've talked enough about Reilly himself to have you know why I liked the role.
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