Before I get too deep into the film, I have to mention that a large number of Saturday Night Live veterans are part of the directing, producing, and acting teams that created this movie (even Lorne Michaels and Will Ferrell). I have to admit that I only thought Saturday Night Live was even remotely funny until March 5, 1982 (R.I.P. John Belushi), or, to be more fair, until the Not Ready For Prime Time Players were reduced to a mere memory. In addition, this is also my only experience with Andy Samberg (SNL) that doesn't involve Justin Timberlake and a Christmas song about a box. Now that I've experienced the film in its entirety, I'll say this: if you're a fan of SNL and enjoy Will Ferrell movies, you'll likely enjoy what Hot Rod has to offer. If you don't, you'll still laugh a lot, but most of your laughter will be based in incredulity rather than in genuine humor.
Hot Rod tells the story of one Rod Kimble (Samberg) who is trying to follow in the footsteps of his deceased stuntman father. When his stepfather Frank (Ian McShane) falls grievously ill, Rod plans a crazy public stunt in order to raise the money for Frank's life-saving operation. The concept seems to follow the template of the stereotypical 80's movie in which an underdog rises to the challenge, earns some respect, and gets the girl in the end. Indeed, this film contains more than a few video montages set to the music of Swedish glam metal band Europe, but the comparison ends there. Rod's motive for saving his stepdad is far from altruistic; he just wants to beat Frank up in a fair fight - which is something Rod has never been able to do. With the help of his crew of screw-offs (Jorma Taccone, Bill Hader, Danny McBride, and Isla Fisher), he sets out to physically prepare himself for the deadly stunt, earn some money, and engage in a whole lot of not-so-witty banter.
I would really like to have watched Hot Rod with South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, just to see how many times they would have yelled "DERP!" at the screen. For those who are unaware, "DERP!" is Parker and Stone's word for a joke you can see a mile away or a ridiculous bit of slapstick comedy. Hot Rod is full of these "DERP!" moments; the movie features a countless number of pratfalls and wacky brawls between Rod and his dying stepfather. It is extremely ironic that Hot Rod was actually written by South Park veteran Pam Brady, and unfortunately, the script is Hot Rod's biggest flaw.
The story seems like it should work, but Hot Rod's main fault lies in its failure to make you care about the main characters. With the exception of Rod, nearly every character in this film is impossible to relate to; the script is filled with so many non sequiturs that you'll often be thinking "What the hell is going on?" Let me give you an example: after a disillusioned Rod shuns his team, he has a change of heart and returns home, where he talks it out with his half-brother Kevin (Jorma Taccone). After getting the plot progression out of the way, the two repeatedly shout "Cool beans!" at each other in a heavily-edited, continuity-breaking sequence that is far too long and bizarre for comfort. In another ridiculously weird scene, as Rod makes his way to the site of his big stunt, the citizens around him suddenly break into a musical number that even more suddenly turns into a violent riot. It is scenes like this that will likely have you shaking your head if you're not into this kind of humor. However, the script is not entirely inane; some moments are pretty clever. There is one particularly funny moment where Rod quietly tells his crush "You look pretty." When she asks him what he said, he repeats that phrase, replacing the adjective with one that rhymes, but is not so nice.
The acting is passable; leading man Andy Samberg turns in an interesting performance (the fake mustache framing his goofy grin really says it all). In fact, I think Rod Kimble is a solid example of a well-meaning and oddly endearing doofus. Samberg seems to channel the likes of Jim Carrey, delivering some seriously amusing putty-faced expressions. Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers) also does a good job filling the role of the admittedly stereotypical sweet yet undeniably cute girl next door. Danny McBride (Pineapple Express) takes his turn as Rico, the crewmember who is always inclined to take the most extreme measures imaginable (there is one very funny scene in which he pulls a gun at a children's party in order to break Rod out of a padlocked barrel). For me, the real star of the show is Bill Hader (Superbad), as the team's mechanic. He is the driving force behind what is perhaps the most memorable scene in the entire film. You'll have to see it for yourself - I don't have the heart to spoil it. These characters are funny in their best moments, but the script doesn't seem to want you care about them at all. What baffles me the most with regards to the cast of Hot Rod is the inclusion of the great Sissy Spacek. Her role as Rod's mother is utterly unnecessary and, frankly, boring. Why the writers have ignored such a talent is beyond me, and Spacek's bit part only makes me wonder what could have been.
The Blu-Ray release of Hot Rod contains a very standard set of special features that you would expect from any modern home release of a motion picture, including a commentary track and a behind-the-scenes feature. The behind-the-scenes feature, titled "Ancestors Protect Me" is less an actual behind-the scenes film and more a testament to how truly insane the people who made this film are. Andy Samberg tells everyone he runs into to "lose the shirt," while Jorma Taccone reveals his exhibitionist tendencies, constantly flashing an incredibly creepy smile. To top it all off, just about everyone in the film voices their hatred and disdain of director Akiva Schaffer. It's all done in good humor here, but I use the term "humor" lightly. The whole production seems to have been made with the intent of getting a few cheap laughs; in my case, they only got a considerable number of eye-rolls.
There is a brief (and I mean brief) feature dealing with the orchestra who played the incidental music behind the film's most climactic scene. I love watching orchestral performances, but here, it's pointless and disposable, especially since the camera pans to Akiva Schaffer, who appears to be dancing spasmodically to the music. It's neither interesting nor funny - it's just dumb.
The inspiration behind the Punch - Dance scene (the one that leads to the aforementioned minute-long fall) is revealed to be Kevin Bacon's warehouse dance scene from Footloose, and there is a short feature that plays both scenes side-by-side. This is actually laugh-out-loud funny, but it has more to do with the ridiculous footage of an angry Kevin Bacon dancing madly through a warehouse - all of the dancing set to 80s new wave music.
Throughout the film, Rod's half-brother Kevin is seen with a camera, filming Rod's stupidity and doing his best to make it look not only presentable, but absolutely badass. His failure to do so opens the door for what is the best of this release's special features: "Kevin's Videos." These videos are presented as advertisements of Rod's "abilities," and they are all funny. Each of these videos looks like something that could have come out of a high school TV Production class, as they are all poorly edited films made with two-figure budgets (a sliding frame stalls repeatedly in the borders of the picture). The best of these videos showcases Rod's attempt to become the Tony Little of stuntmen; he tells us: "Beware the seven dangerous sins: Power! Danger! Sloth! Murder! Family! Agility! Being Number One!" All of this is set against video clips of Rod doing something really childish, i.e. dunking a basketball into a hoop that is roughly six feet off the ground. The other videos show Rod's grueling training exercises, which include: climbing up a very small tree while hurting himself in the process (the bark was sharp!), wall-running about two feet, admiring a Sea-Doo that is not his, practicing outlandish karate moves while asking for his half-brother's approval, and jumping over two foot-high traffic cones. This feature also includes a false posthumous tribute to Rod (with Rod, it is best to be prepared for the worst).
To top off the feature set, the Blu-Ray release of Hot Rod includes two staples of the modern home video release: deleted/extended scenes and gag reel. Some of these are funny, but most of them keep in line with the rest of this film - that is to say, they are very hit-or-miss.
Hot Rod has its share of funny moments, but it is not a very good movie. I think of this film as a good bowl of soup that has been broken over a very hard and dirty surface. There is nothing to hold the entire film together, leaving the final product an unintelligible mess. However, if you prefer the kind of comedy that favors non sequitur over deep situational and character-based humor, you will probably love this one. As far as the option of Blu-Ray or DVD, I'll only say that both contain the same amount of features. The difference is based on picture clarity. In the end, Hot Rod is a polarizing film that Will Ferrell/Saturday Night Live junkies should absolutely see; everyone else would probably do well to skip it.
