Retro Nerd Girl Movie Reviews: The Dukes of Hazzard 2005 Movie Review

Thursday, May 3, 2018

The Dukes of Hazzard 2005 Movie Review - No Spoilers

From the far reaches of the Milky Way Galaxy, It's Retro Nerd Girl with a quick spoiler free film review for you.

Today I'll be reviewing the movie The Dukes of Hazzard released in 2005.

Starring:
Seann William Scott, Johnny Knoxville, Jessica Simpson

Directed by:
Jay Chandrasekhar

Genre:
Action, Adventure, Comedy

Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) Rating:
PG-13

Budget:
$50,000,000 (estimated)

Current IMDb Rating When Reviewed:
5.1

The Synopsis is:
This is the live action film of the popular TV show from 1979 to 1985 Dukes of Hazzard chronicling the shenanigans of the Duke Boys, cousins, Bo and Luke as they avoid getting caught by the local sheriff.

I didn’t get to see this when it came out in theaters, but always I thought that it might be good especially since it matched up so many appropriate actors for the concept. I expected them to really knock this out of the ballpark.

Being a lover of the Dukes of Hazzard on TV when I was a kid and I always remembered the episodes being very entertaining. I must have changed, because the formula fell a little flat to me once seeing it in this film.

I know that the TV show didn’t have the most riveting plot but maybe this story only works for a short format. It seemed as if the main premise was written as the writers just kept saying, and then, and then, to pad out a feature film length time. The story got incredibly convoluted by the end.

I felt that the film had too many characters, too many villains, and too many plots going on in the story.

Everyone seemed to hate the Dukes and they didn’t seem to get along with each other as much either in the film. I missed the charm that was in the TV show, where they just seemed like they were good boys who want to do the right thing.

The film was filled with great cameos, but none of the original actors from the TV show. I didn’t absolutely need them in the film, but it is interesting to know that the reason why they weren’t in the film was due to their dissatisfaction of the screenplay, which makes sense. At perhaps that was it. Listening to the complaints about the story from the people who knew the characters the most could have made the biggest difference in hindsight.

A lot of the humor was given a new brand of hi-jinx comedy common in the early 2000’s, playing upon the antics of many teen and college genre films to bank in a new audience. So unfortunately the film lacks substance and feels very un-cinematic.

However, I did enjoy the levity of this film. We have a lot of fun car stunts, bar brawls, and a few cute gags to laugh at. I am sure there are some fans out there that adore the film.

I especially enjoyed seeing many of the actors who cameo in the film such as Burt Reynolds as Jefferson Davis 'Boss' Hogg, David Koechner, Willie Nelson, Lynda Carter, and Rip Taylor.

And all of the actors were well cast, especially the leads Seann William Scott and Johnny Knoxville.

Jessica Simpson made her acting debut in this film as Daisy Duke and she was pretty good as well.

For the old school fans of the original TV show, this might or might not work for you. It depends on your openness to something that looks like the old show, but has a different tone.

For a very young audience, this will be fun and entertaining on the most part.

I also wanted to mention that the film also met mixed audiences because of the beloved car of the show General Lee, the 1969 Dodge charger with the Confederate flag stamped on the rooftop. In the 1970’s the flag seemed to go unnoticed in television viewings as a symbol of southern pride.

As we are in more sensitive age, the flag’s representation in history, by today’s standards is seen as racist declaration since the Civil War was responsible for abolishing slavery and the Confederates, who lost, wanted to keep slavery in place. That may have contribute to its lack of support by the public. I believe as well, that a failure to explain why it means so much for the boys to have the symbol on their car was also part of it, which could have created greater understanding.

The film tried to put a comedic spin to it, but it created one of the cringiest moments in the film and separated it's audience immediately. However, it's never too late to bring back the Duke boys. Perhaps, the franchise, will take another stab at a cinematic run and perhaps take some tips from the Fast and Furious franchise.