Walking Tall DVD Review:

Chris Vaughn (The Rock) returns home after eight years in the army to find that his hometown has wasted away to a dilapidated, crime-ridden shell of its former self. The Mill, which was once main employer in the town, has long since closed and been replaced by a Casino. Owned by Jay Hamilton (McDonough), Chris’s old High School rival, the casino has given him power and influence in the town with everything that is happenings doing so because he wants it to. Seeing this, Chris decides to step up and bring down Hamilton.

The Rock tries again to conquer Hollywood like his does wrestling ring but he isn’t getting the right projects to do so.

His career is mimicking Arnold Schwarzenegger’s early forays into the movie business. After both been a superstar in there sports (Wrestling in The Rock’s case and Body Building in Arnie’s case) they went on to star in a high concept action role which brought them instant movie fame (The Rock = The Mummy Returns, Arnie = The Terminator). They then went on to star in some movies that, while entertaining, never really set their genre alight but did increase their profile. Walking Tall is one of those movies for The Rock.

Based on the true story of Sheriff Buford Pusser (The story has hit the silver screen before in the 70s), the filmmakers have taken the main story and tailored it towards The Rock’s unique talents. Here he gets the chance to take on numerous opponents in his own inimitable style, dispatching them with ease but in Walking Tall we do get to see our hero take one hell of a beating. Of course this is the catalyst for his character’s fight back against the corruption in the town as this isn’t the most original of premises but the sheer screen presence of the WWE superstar makes it all the more watchable.

Another personality moving away from his TV roots to become a thespian is Johnny Knoxville. The Jackass himself is slowly carving a name for himself in the acting fraternity. As Chris Vaughn’s best friend Ray he portrays him as a very likeable character that has struggle to step out of his illustrious friend’s shadow. Knoxville improves with every performance and he actually might be on his way to becoming a big screen star.

Their support is also up to the job. Neal McDonough plays a good villain by portraying him as a real power hungry grease ball. Ashley Scott is nothing more than eye candy but good eye candy all the same. Kristen Wilson and Khleo Thomas are fine as Chris’s sister and nephew.

Walking Tall is another step on the Hollywood ladder for The Rock. He has the screen presence and charisma to make it far in the business. While the inevitable comparisons between him and other movie muscle men will continue, he does have on major asset in his favour over all that have gone before him. He can actually act.

Star Rating = * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is very good, as you’d expect from a modern movie. The sharp picture brings out the best in the Canadian location with bright colours through out, especially during the casino scenes. The sound is also good with the surround track coming into its own during the energetic fight scenes.

BONUS FEATURES

Audio Commentary by The Rock

The star of ‘Walking Tall’ provides a chatty and fun commentary track for the action packed movie. At the beginning he informs you that this will not be a technical or arty track but just a movie fan chatting about a film that he really liked been a part and this makes for a good commentary. He talks about the background behind the story and how he became involved in the movie. He also reveals the changes that were made to the story to fit it into his persona. He discusses casting and what it was like working with the cast but the commentary really comes into its own when The Rock starts to talk about the fight scenes. This is a good commentary track from the new action star.

Audio Commentary by director Kevin Bray, director of photography Glen McPherson and editor Robert Ivison

A more technical commentary than the one provided by the star, the director, DP and editor tell you about the production of the movie. They talk about the re-imagining of the original true story on which the film was based and why the changes where made. They reveal behind the scenes secrets about the shoot, the Vancouver location, the music, casting and much more. They also talk about the scenes that where removed and how they want to make the film look realistic and not over the top like many action orientated movies. This is a decent technical commentary from a group of filmmakers that feel passionately about their movie.

Fight the Good Fight (8.22 mins)

Director Kevin Bray, stunt coordinator Jeff Habberstad and stars The Rock and Neal McDonough take you behind the scenes of the fights in ‘Walking Tall’. The featurette shows you how the production wanted the fights to be realistic, showing you storyboards, designs and rehearsals, as well as the finished onscreen brawl.

Deleted Scenes (1.34 mins)

Entitled ‘Blackjack’, ‘He hurts people’ and ‘It’s not your fault’ these three deleted scenes would have added much to the movie but without a director commentary or introduction, we don’t know why these scenes were removed from the final print.

Outtakes (0.45 mins)

A very short montage of fight mishaps and forgetting lines involving The Rock and the rest of the cast

Alternative Ending (1.16 mins)

Your chance to see a slightly different ending to the one in the final cut

Photo Gallery (1.24 mins)

A video montage of behind the scenes and publicity shots from ‘Walking Tall’

Trailer (2.02 mins)

The final theatrical promotional trailer for ‘Walking Tall’

OVERALL

While the commentary tracks are very good the rest of the bonus material is very poor. The featurette is far too short and the deleted scenes, outtakes and alternative ending are not even worth bothering with. This will do nothing to delight fans of The Rock and the movie as this could have so easily have been a very good package.

DVD Star Rating = * *

Jamie Kelwick

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