Quality Redneckery Reigns Supreme

Good Cast, Fast-Paced Action Propels The Dukes of Hazzard

“This reminds me, I wonder what my good buddy Steve-O is doing right now?” Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott star in The Dukes of Hazzard.

If you are like me, you probably have numerous reasons for not being that interested in the new Dukes of Hazzard film. I’m not a fan of the original series and have seen maybe two episodes in my life. I also think Jessica Simpson is the most overrated singer-actress to ever warrant a hyphen. Plus, there are the PC issues of stereotyping white southerners as reckless drunk yahoos driving around with Confederate flags painted on their cars and what that flag means to most black southerners.

And quite frankly, after watching Bewitched, Herbie, Batman, Star Wars, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, etc., I am ready for the “Summer of the Remake/Sequel” to be over so some original movies can take over their silver screen space (will some theatre please get Murderball?).

Having watched the trailers for the new Dukes movie, I expected that the film would just be a 90-minute rehashing of the television series with some interesting cameos and saltier language.

I’m here to tell you that this Dukes of Hazzard totally blows the TV series out of the duck pond. Funny, exciting, and filled with irreverence for the original series, the movie is like a feature-length real life Road Runner cartoon.

It all starts with the casting and this time they got it right. The original TV series had a couple of GQ California pretty boys in embarrassingly tight designer jeans pretending to be good old boys. The movie version stars Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott as cousins Luke and Bo Duke and the two relatively unknown actors bring a perfect blend of charisma and recklessness to their roles. Knoxville is better known as the host and resident punching bag of the MTV show Jackass and his anarchist’s manifesto of a personality hits the nail on the head as Luke Duke is ready to chase skirt or dive into a bar fight at a moment’s notice.

Scott has been seen previously in the comedies Old School, Road Trip and the American Pie series. As Bo Duke he is sensitive, temperamental and one heck of a dirt road driver. Scott balances Knoxville’s anarchy with the maniacal fury of a wronged boyfriend.

“Bo and Luke are essentially good guys,” said Knoxville, originally from Tennessee. “They’re just reckless as all hell. Mean as snakes, but in a good way. I mean they are respectful to women, and more than happy to deck someone who isn’t.”

The rest of the cast is well chosen from Burt Reynolds’ slimy businessman Boss Hogg to Willie Nelson’s wise-cracking moonshine-making Uncle Jessie. Although Jessica Simpson is little more than eye candy as country cousin Daisy Duke, she does bring that wholesome-yet-sexy feel of the TV show’s character to the role. Other standout performances include Kevin Heffernan as Sheev, Lynda Carter as Aunt Pauline and Michael Weston as Deputy Enos Strate.

Director Jay Chandrasekhar (Super Troopers, Club Dread) attempted to recreate a Smokey and the Bandit type of feel to the movie and revive that “alternative view of law enforcement” that many 70s movies had. The director also manages to address some more contemporary issues such as racism, development and the environment. When car mechanic Cooter paints a Confederate flag on top of Bo’s orange Dodge Charger “General Lee” before the boys travel to Atlanta, the movie examines the various reactions that the symbol receives in an urban setting.

If you are looking for an intriguing plot and characters who grow as the movie unfolds, this is not the picture for you. If you are looking for some good laughs and a whole lot of superior car chase scenes, then look no further. In an era when computer graphics have just about eclipsed real stunts as movie effects, r:The Dukes of Hazzard is completely old school. The General Lee is slammed into other cars and thrown airborne on a continual basis and the outtakes during the closing credits show how some of the stunts worked better than others.

The Dukes of Hazzard might not be for everyone, but I can’t remember a movie this year where so many people in the audience were laughing for such an extended period of time.

The Dukes of Hazzard is rated PG-13 for sexual content, crude and drug-related humor, language and comic action violence. It is currently playing at Regal Cinemas in Boone.