A wonderful movie that just didn't make it

Rating: 4/10 (15 July 2009)

Is this a drama, parody, comedy or just plain silly? It's been a while since I wanted to write a review on a movie. I saw part of the R-rated version in one of the premium channels last month and so I watched it again this week from start/finish to really get the essence of what the movie is about.
Great to say that John C. Reilly, although he is mostly known for his goofy comedies (and usually teamed up with Will Ferrell), is a wonderful singer and musician. It is refreshing to see someone who can really play the guitar in the movie. Really folks, I watched his fingers and it shows that he really knows the guitar chords. That made the movie so real for me.
All the songs are terrific. The changes in the style of songs Dewey Cox sang as he goes through his journey conformed very well to the changes with the times. Kudos to the music composers.
And unfortunately, that is where it ends. Where the music delivered, the drama/comedy/parody plot destroyed it. It is anyone's guess to really understand what the writers were trying to do with this movie.
In my opinion, the movie would have been better off with more drama and mystery like "Eddie and the Cruisers" than the too much silly encounters with the celebrities. The writers tried so hard to copy the fictional character/celebrity encounter from "Forrest Gump" and failed miserably at it.
Also, the sub-plot to Dewey Cox's childhood that created his demons was so unrealistic. A simple plot there would've allowed the audience to capture the emotion and empathize better with Dewey's risqué and volatile behavior, much like the emotion he showed for the love of his family at the end of the movie.
There is one sub-plot that I thought was properly done: Dewey's exposure to the different paraphernalia and drugs through the years. That was a masterful stroke and funny because the audience can relate to it.
All in all, I did like the movie due to John C. Reilly's great acting and singing. Much of the supporting cast was good also.