By Fred Topel | Image property of Columbia Pictures
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
I think Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story may be the best film of the year. I know I only put it on my 10 Most Good list, but I've already seen it three times between the press screening, a hotel room and the Blu Ray, and I already want to watch it again.
Blu-ray: Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Since the film lovingly replicates all the musical biographies, it has samplings of every era for high definition glory. You've got the bright farm colors, the pastels of the big band era, all the colored stage lights shining on the band. Then there is the gritty dark period of drug slums, jail and hazy rehab.
There are the earthy tones of the '60s with hippie browns and outdoor scenes. The grainy black and white sequence cuts right to full color India and the animated segment. Then all the colors return for the '70s and beyond.
As such a fan, I watched the extended cut as well. They definitely had the right tone calling it the unbearable self-indulgent cut, but that is the cleverest thing about it. For the first 2/3s, there are only tiny scene extensions that hurt the pacing of the film and make certain jokes redundant. There are a lot more tits though.
One section that is significantly deeper is the '70s where there is an entire subplot about Cox's third marriage and full celebrity characters and cameos restored. It would still be better to just see as its own deleted scene, though they do pay off the flashback set up, and there are even more tits.
I'll never watch the extended cut again. The 90 minute version is perfect and awesome. But what a fantastic looking film on Blu Ray. Ray and Walk the Line can only hope to look this good when they come out.
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