Movie Review: Walking Tall

Walking Tall (2004) 

Directed by Kevin Bray 

Written by David Klass, Channing Gibson, David Levien, Brian Koppelman

Starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Johnny Knoxville, Neal McDonaugh, Kristen Wilson 

Release Date April 2nd, 2004 

Published April 3rd, 2004 

It's an unspoken truth amongst WWE fans that the greatest star in the sport, the People’s champ, The Rock, is finished with the wrestling biz. The most electrifying man in sports entertainment is taking a route that no wrestler has taken before, full acceptance in the world outside of wrestling.

Oh sure, Hulk Hogan became a pop culture icon in the eighties but realistically Hogan never had the mainstream acceptance the Rock is currently receiving. Whereas Hogan was a cartoon and a sideshow attraction, Rock is a full on phenomenon amongst Hollywood producers looking to replace their aging action heroes. His latest action vehicle is a remake of the hillbilly ass kicking revenge fantasy Walking Tall.

Army vet Chris Vaughn (Rock) is returning to the small Oregon town where he grew after 8 years in the Special Forces. Just off the harbor transport Chris walks into a town he no longer recognizes. There are porn shops where the hardware store used to be. A sleazy casino has taken over as the town's main source of income, replacing the lumber mill where Chris's father had worked.

The biggest change of all however is the drugs. As Chris walks through town he sees a mother leaving children unattended while she buys drugs and teenagers discreetly exchanging cash and drugs on each street corner. Chris is shocked and appalled and 

Things have changed even for Chris's old friends. Chris's best friend Ray (Johnny Knoxville) has recently kicked a serious drug problem. Another close friend, Jay (Neil McDonough), always a spoiled rich boy, is the guy who bought and shut down the mill and now runs the eyesore casino. After Chris's nephew ODs on crystal meth, it also becomes clear that Jay is running the local drug trade. Ray wants to make it up to Chris, especially after his goons beat Chris nearly to death, by bringing him in to work in the casino. When Chris says no it begins a war for the soul of the town.

The original Walking Tall from 1974 featured Joe Don Baker and was the supposedly true story of small town sheriff Buford Pusser who fought lawbreakers in his little redneck town armed only with a two by four. In this "reimagining", if I may use our lamest new buzzword, the hero’s name has changed but the mission is the same and so is the weapon. Like a backwoods Dirty Harry, the hero of Walking Tall delivers the kind of vigilante justice that might not be politically correct but is vicariously thrilling.

The Rock is a much more physically intimidating presence than Joe Don Baker and thankfully not saddled with the name Buford. He has the kind of charisma and charm of which Joe Don could never even dream of having. This is a slightly more subdued Rock than the comic performance of last year’s The Rundown but it is just as effective. It’s his appealing personality that makes up for his lack of dramatic weight.

Rock is aided greatly by Johnny Knoxville who can be quite annoying but here finds a good comic sidekick vibe that never gets in the way of The Rock's ass kicking.

A fellow critic and I exchanged emails recently comparing Walking Tall to the 80's redneck fighting movie Roadhouse and the comparison is a fair one. Both films take place in an alternate reality where all cops are crooks, where bullets never hit anyone important, where a fair fight is at least three on one and our hero is infallible. The difference between the films is that The Rock looks more than credible beating on two or even three guys at once while Patrick Swayze was about as intimidating as a guy with a dance background could ever be.

There is something about vigilante justice that many of us find appealing. Justice where little things like civil rights and lawyers never get in the way of the bad guy getting what he has coming to him. Having that justice dealt out by a guy as appealing and charismatic as the Rock is a bonus. This guy is a star and while his acting range is limited to monosyllabic action roles, he makes the most of each those roles and I can't wait to see him in another one.

Movie Review: All About the Benjamins

All About the Benjamins (2002) 

Directed by Kevin Bray

Written by Ice Cube, Ronald Lang

Starring Ice Cube, Mike Epps, Anthony Michael Hall, Eva Mendes

Release Date March 8th, 2002 

Published March 8th, 2002

I've always liked Ice Cube as both a rapper and an actor. His performance in 1991's Boyz In The Hood was a blistering announcement of an actor who was here to stay. While at times Cube's style can be a little too laid back, his persona is such that he's always likable. In All About The Benjamins, his laid-back style is put to good use against the backdrop of sunny south Florida.

Cube plays Bucam, a bounty hunter who picks up petty criminals who skip bail while indulging in his love of expensive rare fish. After taking down a redneck criminal (Anthony Michael Hall in an unnecessary cameo), Bucam is once again assigned to pick up Reggie Wright (Mike Epps) a small time hustler whom he has picked up numerous times. Things are different in this pursuit however as Bucam, while chasing Reggie, happens upon diamond smugglers who try to kill him as Reggie hides in the back of their getaway car.

We've seen all of this before; the difference this time is the chemistry between Cube and Epps who have the easy rapport of a couple of good friends. Unfortunately Epps act is tiresome and Cube can't get out from under both Epps's hamminess and the script’s clichéd action.

The film attempts to buck action movie conventions but the attempts are obvious as if the film is trying to tell us, “See normally it's done this way but we are doing it this way.” This “too clever by half” approach only calls more attention to the clichés rather than subverting them.

Cube is great and has a great future as both a writer and actor. Epps on the other hand needs to work on his shtick, which gets tiresome quickly. The same energy and over the top attitude worked in How High, but in All About the Benjamins it's gone from funny to obnoxious.