Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

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Talladega Nights:
The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
Directed byAdam McKay
Produced byJudd Apatow
Jimmy Miller
StarringWill Ferrell
John C. Reilly
Sacha Baron Cohen
Gary Cole
Michael Clarke Duncan
Distributed byColumbia TriStar
LanguageEnglish

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (formerly known as High, Wide, and Handsome) (2006) is a film comedy about NASCAR racing that is currently in post-production. It is directed by Adam McKay, who co-stars with actor and former Saturday Night Live cast member Will Ferrell. It is set for release August 4, 2006. John C. Reilly, Amy Adams, Sacha Baron Cohen (Da Ali G Show), and various SNL alumni also appear.

Synopsis

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby tells the story of NASCAR stock car racing sensation Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) whose "win at all costs" approach has made him a national hero. He and his loyal racing partner and childhood friend Cal Naughton Jr. (John C. Reilly), are a fearless duo—dubbed "Thunder" and "Lightning" by their fans for their ability to finish so many races in the #1 and #2 positions, with Cal always in second place. When a flamboyant French Formula One driver, Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen), challenges the "Thunder" and "Lightning" for the supremacy of NASCAR, Ricky Bobby must face his own demons and fight Girard for the right to be known as racing's top driver.

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Plot

Ricky Bobby grew up in a broken family in fictional town of West River, North Carolina. His father was an alcoholic and he was raised by his mother. But Ricky has always liked to go fast. One morning while his mother was at the grocery store, Ricky climbed into the drivers seat and, using a wiffle ball bat to press the pedals, took his momma's station wagon on a high-speed joy ride.

Ricky Bobby never did outgrow his love of racing, and grows up to become a professional NASCAR diver. Ricky Bobby soars to the top of NASCAR very quickly, achieving both fame and fortune.

While on top he said loudly, "I ate the whole wheel of cheese!" and the rest of the racing world, he is challenged by gay French Formula One driver Jean Girard. Jean Girard outperforms Ricky Bobby on the track and overtakes Ricky's #1 standing. Ricky, desperate to regain his dominance, pushes himself too hard and ends up in a horrible wreck. With his nerves lost, he retires from NASCAR. His wife, yearning to be married to the top NASCAR driver marries his best friend and former partner who he refused to let come first in races. Which he later regrets, though still mad about the betrayal.

Ricky moves back home and takes a job as a pizza delivery driver for Luigi's Pizzaria, which he soon loses after driving his delivery vehicle off of a cliff.

With his life at a lowpoint, Ricky's father suddenly reenters his life. With the retraining and guidance of his father, Ricky gains back his confidence and gets back into racing and eventually reclaims his rightful place atop NASCAR.

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Principal Cast

Trivia

  • Producers pitched the movie idea to studios as: "Six words: Will Ferrell as a NASCAR driver."
  • The film was originally titled "Talladega Nights" but NASCAR officials objected. The working title was then changed to "High, Wide, and Handsome" (the name the production company used for the filming), before being changed again to "The Untitled Will Ferrell NASCAR Movie." Of course the movie was reverted to its original title in the end.
  • Another name considered for the film was "Loud and Proud."
  • There are no lights at Talladega Superspeedway, so "Talladega Nights" is a misnomer.
  • According to an article in the Charlotte Observer on 10/14/2005, when asked to be in scenes for the film, "One Nextel Cup team read the script and declined to participate. 'It'll set the sport back 25 years,' a person with the team said."
  • Although Talladega is in the title of the movie, only one week of shooting actually took place in Alabama. The rest of the movie was shot at in North Carolina. Primary shooting locations included the Charlotte region of North Carolina (including Cabarrus County and Gaston County). Even race scenes taking place at Texas Motor Speedway were actually shot at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, NC.
  • At "The Pit Stop" restaurant, the sign is deliberately misspelled "Delicieus Foods & 25 TV Screens"

See also


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