The extreme, raunchy comedies of the 2000s threatened to destroy the entire industry
Author: Robert Skuch Published
The age of baseless conspiracy theories. 2007 Keep Going: The Dewey Cox Story It can’t be played on streaming because it has the potential to destroy the entire industry if anyone could easily watch it. What industry you ask? The music biopic industry. It’s such a direct parody, with a storyline and pacing that’s so oversimplified that it threatens to undermine an award-winning film like this Bohemian Rhapsody, Completely unknownand most recently the Jeremy Allen White Springsteen project, save me from nowhere.
As a musician who absolutely despises music biopics, I think I have a solid and completely unbiased argument here. Every biopic is exactly the same, without a doubt, and Keep moving forward Dismantling an entire genre through imitation. Any casual viewer who watches Judd Apatow and Jake Kasdan’s vehicle before watching a “legitimate” biopic will decide to abandon the genre. You can’t make a movie like this dirt or routing after serious Keep moving forward Exposing how formulaic they actually are.
The power of effective imitation
I once worked with a guy who loved Motley Crue so much because he ironically celebrated their entire catalog. When in 2019 dirt He ranted about it for a week after it aired on Netflix. Being a musician myself, at a time when music biopics could be made or left behind, I watched it on his recommendation. I am very angry, not only because dirt An attempt to reframe some truly abhorrent behavior into a hero’s arc fails due to simplistic storytelling. It’s as if the band came from nothing and became superstars overnight, with all the nuance stripped away.
It looks like I’m writing this Keep moving forward Article just so I can continue dirtthis part is correct. The problem is dirtAs well as the genre it belongs to, there are too many timeline jumps trying to idolize musicians while playing like an episode of VH1 behind the music. Nikki Sixx ran away from home, squatted in an apartment with her bandmates, played one show, and took the world by storm. There was sex, drugs and rock and roll. Then tragedy happened. The band hit rock bottom. They had a falling out. They reconciled. They then get ready for a triumphant comeback concert, while actual footage of the band plays during the closing credits.
That’s the problem with music biopics. Pick any biopic from a random lineup and it’ll tend to lean into the same clichés without any deep cuts. Actors play rock stars, giving viewers a Wikipedia summary of a decades-long career in less than two hours. If you’re a die-hard fan of the artist, this is a buffet of biographies that simply don’t fit the format. Music biopics are cinematic coffee table books, Keep moving forward thrive in this context.
Summary of Hard Walk
For the sake of my own argument, I won’t give you the full beat breakdown Keep moving forward Because if you’re a person with eyes and ears, you already know what’s going on. John C. Reilly’s Dewey Cox is about to perform his final comeback performance, so of course he has his life to think about before taking the stage. this is a copy traced The opening shot, it’s so intentionally condescending that you’ll never watch the movie it’s parodying with a straight face again.
We learn how Dewey accidentally cut his brother Nate (Chip Homes) in half with a machete, which gives us the “haunted by his past” angle that every biopic needs. Dewey has never been able to get over this, and every time they’re on screen together, his father (Raymond J. Barry) reminds him that “the wrong son died.” Dewey taught himself blues guitar in one night, and seven years later he was depicted as a 14-year-old kid, although clearly just John C. Reilly, without makeup to make him look younger.
Like a true biopic, things continue to escalate
Dewey met with Jewish record executives and got his big opportunity. He was almost laughed out of the studio, but decided to record his new song “Walk Hard” as an attempt at a hit. The band behind him had never heard the song before but were told to follow his lead, which immediately produced perfect harmonies as everyone suddenly knew the lyrics and chord changes. Theo (Chris Parnell) walks with a bass line and Dave (Matt Besser) plays on guitar like he’s been practicing for years.
Dewey Cox becomes a household name, but his drummer Sam (Tim Meadows) feeds him drugs and warns him, “You absolutely don’t want this, it’s too good, and it will ruin your life.” Dewey takes drugs, and the drugs ruin his life. Dewey married his second wife, Darlene (Jenna Fisher), without any thought of his first wife, Edith (Kristen Wiig), at home, although he was still married to her and had children with her. Just go on like this. But don’t worry, there’s a triumphant ending, because this is a musical biopic.
So compelling that it ruined the biopic
Keep going: Dewey Cox The story quietly destroyed the entire genre upon its release. Although it was a critical success, it was a commercial failure, grossing $20 million at the box office against a reported budget of $35 million. However, the damage has been done. Now hailed as a cult classic, it’s easy to see why Keep moving forward Has stood the test of time. No music biopic released since would have been taken seriously because John C. Reilly knew about the assignment. He is the embodiment of the media-friendly, reputation-managed biopic, and his commitment to footage directly undermines the impact of any “true story” crafted like a hit.
Although I have no way to definitively prove this Keep moving forward Being banned from streaming in order to protect the studio’s investment in current and upcoming music biopics, I’m sure that’s why it’s hidden behind a paywall to stop viewers from parting with their cash when they’re already subscribed to 10 other streaming platforms.
Dewey Cox was a certified assassin who had Freddie Mercury, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Bob Marley and Elvis Presley among his crosshairs. As of this writing, you can’t stream it yet Keep Going: The Dewey Cox Story. If you want to test my theory, you can rent or buy it through Amazon Prime Video, Fandango At Home, and YouTube.
