'Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (2006)' has a number of key problems that easily make it Adam McKay's worst effort. The first issue is that it's honestly pretty offensive, as it's genuinely quite homophobic, fairly sexist, a bit xenophobic and just generally seems to dislike the very people it should most clearly be aimed at. It finds some way of taking a low-blow at pretty much every conceivable group. These low-bows that don't seem satirical to the point that they would be mocking the very idea of their inclusion - which would be the only way they could actually work and, thus, be somewhat excusable. If these dodgy jokes were used as a way to shine a light on how ridiculous the specific attitudes they highlight are, the flick could've lampooned its closed-minded characters and also taken a stance that allowed it to examine why they think the way they do, before developing them so that they become more tolerant and the overall piece can take on an ultimately inclusive tone with at least a half-decent message. The film doesn't do that, though. Not even close. Perhaps the problems were unbeknownst to those behind the camera. The jokes might've just been haphazardly thrown in without any thought to their possibly harmful nature. This leads to, or is perhaps a product of, a careless and callous kind of comedy, one that does occasionally feel a tad mean-spirited. The second main issue is an incredibly poor, almost non-existent, structure that makes the entire movie feel more like a string of improvised jokes than a proper narrative. It is very difficult to become engaged with the 'plot' at any point because of this. The piece also feels incredibly long. Another big problem is the fact that the characters are all either too blatantly unlikable or straight-up stupid - usually a combination of the two - to care about at all. This means you can never be invested in anything that happens to any of them and that the weak 'redemption' arc feels even more unearned than it would've if it were just poorly done. The final flaw is that it isn't actually all that funny, either, giving me maybe two chuckles (and I do only mean short, one-breath chuckles) in its entirety. I will say that the more irreverent, light-hearted and good-natured jokes tend to be the ones that land. In its more absurdist moments, or even its more on-point satirical ones, there is some potential. I can't say that I particularly enjoyed the piece, though, and I certainly wasn't entertained. Also, that French accent is perhaps the worst I've ever heard. 5/10

Jack FischerTalladega Nights Movie Review "If you ain't first you're last." (Ricky Bobby) Ricky Bobby, Will Ferrell,comedy genius to perfection" (Jamie Russell Rotten Tomatoes), becomes the best NASCAR driver, then loses everything when Jean Girard, Sacha Baron Cohen aka Ali G, steals the win from him, leading Ricky to not win for awhile. Then Ricky, makes a comeback when Ricky and Girard crash, leading to a running race to the finish line. In Talladega Nights, Adam McKay creates a comedy using a North Carolinian stereotype through Ricky Bobby. Two parts of the movie were similar to real life situations. First, the costumes were close copies to actual driver suits. The movie used real NASCAR suits that made it more realistic. Additionally, the cars were authentically represented as they had sponsors and logos on the side of the cars. According to Tom Neven, a movie critic, "there has never been any good NASCAR movies, but Will Ferrell ended that streak" (Tom Neven Plugged In) to depict a real life situation.While the director Adam McKay made a spoof of the racing world, NASCAR lovers still found it realistic and amusing. People who watch NASCAR were not offended with the movie. They thought it was a realistic movie about a driver that loves to win races. The special effects in Talladega Nights were not too impressive, however, the movie was not designed for that purpose. In the movie the special effects were fine that I could notice. In Talladega Nights the special effects were not the greatest in the eyes of a movie critic, but to an average person they were realistic, for example when Ricky Bobby thinks he on fire after he crashes. The special effects were not supposed to be Academy Award winning, but was just supposed to be a spoof of NASCAR. Talladega Nights was an appealing movie because the directors used authentic costumes and cars to make it believable. Additionally the special effects were not fantastic but convincing. I highly recommend this movie to people that enjoy comedy movies.

"Talladega Nights" is ad-lib city - as the end credits gag reel will attest - but you can still see these actors running wild with their dialogue throughout the actual movie. I tend to think this is why, as Will Ferrell movies go, I don't take to it like I do "Anchorman" or "Step Brothers". Some of it works, some of it falls flat. To its credit, it functions pretty well as a NASCAR parody, and does infuse the drive-in-a-circle sport with energy.That said, Gary Cole easily walks away with this movie - which that guy has a knack for doing, but it's still fun to watch. Then again, it is a full-length movie built on Will Ferrell's Dubya impression.6/10

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby has to be one of the stupidest so-called comedies it has ever been my displeasure to watch. I don't like Will Farrell in the first place, but I like NASCAR even less, so when I saw that the film was supposedly a parody of NASCAR, I just had to watch. The trouble is, the movie is not funny; it is simply stupid. The scenes that the writers tried to make comical were not because those scenes reminded me of real people that I know who would actually try the scene in real life. No kidding, I know some NASCAR fanatics who would not only identify with the character Ricky Bobby, but would actually love to be him. Don't waste your time watching this sad, stupid movie.