'Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (R)(out of four)

John C. Reilly is one of those actors who like Paul Giamatti before "Sideways," was best known for quietly lending his considerable talents to supporting roles in films like "Boogie Nights" and "The Good Girl." But with the musical "Chicago," Reilly earned a well-deserved Oscar nomination as Renee Zellweger's not-very-bright husband, but he also demonstrated considerable talent as a singer.

In the wake of his "shake and bake" box office chemistry with Will Ferrell in the car racing comedy, "Talladega Nights," it was about time Reilly got to step out front as the leading man. And in "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" he gets that chance and doesn't disappoint.

This "biography" of a fictional music star gleefully parodies every other film in the genre, ranging from "Walk the Line," and "Ray," to "The Buddy Holly Story" and "The Jazz Singer." Even the Beatles animated movie, "Yellow Submarine" gets a poke.

It starts with Dewey as an old man about to get his Lifetime Achievement award. While an anxious stage manager searches for him, yelling, "I need Cox," the music star flashes back on his "life." It begins with young Dewey growing up on a farm in Alabama in the 1940s.

He incurs his father's lifelong wrath after accidentally killing his more-talented, golden-child brother in an hilarious machete accident. Dewey is driven to succeed as a performer, and as a teen performs at a high school's talent show (the 42-year-old Reilly plays a 14-year-old deadpan, while surrounded by obviously teenage actors).

Even though his song is an innocent, Pat Boone-type number, the crowd inexplicitly goes nuts. Dewey's apparent raw animal magnetism shows itself as people starting dirty-dancing in the aisles, girls tear off their shirts, and marijuana cigarettes are lit up.

Dewey leaves home with a young wife ("Saturday Night Live" Kristen Wiig) to seek fame and fortune. He's sweeping floors at a black nightclub but is quickly discovered after he fills in for the incapacitated headliner, and belts out "You Got to Love Your Negro Man" to a stunned, but quickly won-over audience that includes a group of (surprise, surprise) music executives.

Dewey's march to fame is on the fast track, and no music film cliché is safe from being skewered by writer Judd Apatow ("The 40 Year-old Virgin") and his writing partner (and the film's director) Jake Kasdan.

Dewey rides to the top, and experiences all the good and bad the music business had to offer encountering several icons from the 1950s to the present.

Along the way he has the predictable problems with drugs, fame, and women. He does meet his match with backup singer "Darlene Madison" played by Jenna Fischer ("The Office"). Their chemistry is evident as they perform one of the film's many clever songs.

A variety of songwriters are responsible for the tunes, which effectively mirror and poke fun at all the decades depicted in the film. Reilly, who has played in a number of bands, does a great job with the songs. I recently saw him perform at a nightclub where he sang in character as "Dewey Cox" and did an entertaining full show.

This film begins with vengeance, though it slightly stumbles in the middle as a few jokes begin to wear thin. But it crosses the finish line with a burst, making "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" a very funny, worthwhile march down the memory lane of popular music.