Very good. Some LOL Moments
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Wild, raunchy comedy about NASCAR culture.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 13–14
What to watch out for
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
This review of Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby was written by Cynthia Fuchs
Parents need to know that the movie includes relentless commercial product placements, by way of parodying professional racing's tendency to slap logos on every available surface. The film also features lots of bawdy chatter concerning a wayward father's lusty behaviors and his son's cheating wife. The hero's two young sons spend half the movie behaving badly -- talking back to elders, cursing, and damaging property -- as their father, a stereotypical "redneck" parody, encourages them. An arm-breaking scene includes loud bone-breaking noise; several car crashes are violent (cars flipping and smashing and catching on fire). The film includes gay characters who kiss each other and declare themselves married. Characters refer to drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes.
Families Can Talk About
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- Families can talk about the terrible role models provided by the parents over subsequent generations. How is Ricky's father disappointing to him, and how does Ricky raise his own children to be lazy, selfish, and rude? What's Ricky's mother's role in the film? They can also talk about whether this parody challenges or reinforces stereotypes about NASCAR.
Have you seen it? Review It!
More on Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
What’s the Story?
At an early age, Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) falls in love with speed. As an adult, Ricky goes from NASCAR pit crew member to a driving partnership with teammate Cal Naughton (John C. Reilly): They perfect a tag-teaming system they call "shake 'n' bake," by which Cal maneuvers on the track in ways that always allow Ricky to win. Ricky turns out to be an ungracious winner, though. He marries a gold-digging busty blond, Carley (Leslie Bibb), turns out a couple of obnoxious sons, and gets rich thanks to endorsement contracts. While he keeps Cal close, their relationship is premised on Ricky's superiority and his friend's abject subservience. All this ends when a challenger appears on the circuit. The French-born Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen) is everything Ricky is not: literate, witty, and openly gay. He's also a very good driver and brutally efficient: On their first encounter in a bar, Jean breaks Ricky's arm, thus putting him out of racing commission. When Ricky returns to the track, he gets in an accident so traumatizing that he believes he's paralyzed. Losing his riches, wife, and contracts, Ricky must then struggle back to the top of his heap.
Is It Any Good?
Both vulgar and cheerful, like most other Will Ferrell movies, TALLADEGA NIGHTS: THE BALLAD OF RICKY BOBBY is also slightly tricky. It makes fun of multiple targets, using equally obnoxious tactics. No one is spared: It mocks stereotypically "redneck" NASCAR culture as well as other groups (gays, foreigners, and intellectuals). It's a parody, but kids may miss the point.
While this story is simple enough, the execution is often startlingly maladroit. While there is plainly an enthusiastic audience for the Anchorman school of filmmaking, this incarnation seems more a string of skits (namely, opportunities for Ferrell to act silly, which he does well) than a movie per se. In fact, the closing credits over outtakes is the funnier version of this approach. So if you go, stay through to the end.
Movie Details
Studio: Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Director: Adam McKay
Run time: 105 minutes
Theatrical release: 8/4/2006, DVD release: 12/12/2006
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language, drug references and brief comic violence
Run time: 105 minutes
Theatrical release: 8/4/2006, DVD release: 12/12/2006
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language, drug references and brief comic violence
Our Members Say
See all 60 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive consumerism
- Negative role models
Better for Nascar fans, But still enjoyable.
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I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive consumerism
- Negative role models
Better for Nascar fans, But still enjoyable.
Very good. Some LOL Moments
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
Good Movie Not For Younger Kids
I like this movie. It's humor is inapropriate at times but mature kids can handle it. There is language but I've heard it before and any kid 11-12 has too. There are many references to drugs, but I don't think there is very much violence.
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I rate this title off for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- Negative role models
Not funny, or necessarily good.
It wasn't funny, and it was surprisingly boring. Only a few parts made me look up from what I was doing and giggle a little. I wouldn't HAVE to see it again. Pretty bad, too. Two young children are calling their parents swears and are extremely rude and talk about sex.
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
- Negative role models
Funny for fans of NASCAR and People that aren't fans of NASCAR (like myself)
It's pretty funny, except it has a lot of issues. The end is really good. I love Sacha Baron Cohen (he's in it near the end) and I also love Will Ferrel. Overall, watch it as an adult, but prescreen for your kids.
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
- Negative role models
Funny for fans of NASCAR and People that aren't fans of NASCAR (like myself)
It's pretty funny, except it has a lot of issues. The end is really good. I love Sacha Baron Cohen (he's in it near the end) and I also love Will Ferrel. Overall, watch it as an adult, but prescreen for your kids.
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I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
This is one of my favorites!
This movie kicks a--. There is a lot of crude humor, gay and lesbian jokes, some sex, jokes on Jesus, some race jokes (reffers to the French as gay), but all of the movie is hilarious. If you were to watch it, watch it unrated. There is also a commercial for tampons in the movie, which may raise some questions...
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I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
awesome
this movie was soooooo funny!!! its wayy better unrated though so watch it unrated.
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I rate this title on for age 9 and give it
Awesome Movie
This movie is awesome. NASCAR and racing in general is cool. I love the race with Jamie McMurray (The guy who gets the finger from Ricky Bobby). It shows the classic drive-in-reverse-and-still-win-for-some-reason thing. I don't like the French guy though. How can someone enter NASCAR mid-season and become wildly popular all of a sudden? And how does he get the points lead so fast? Oh well, just enjoy the kick butt racing action.
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I rate this title on for age 10 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Inappropriate sexual content
- Inappropriate language
- Excessive consumerism
- Drinking, smoking, or drug use
Great movie
GOOD
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I rate this title pause for age 13 and give it
Only about 20% of Americans like this movie, I am one of them
Its nowhere near the best comedy but still something I can watch.
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I rate this title off for age 0 and give it
Parents don't be fooled. Talladega Nights has a lot of raunchy humor
Well first the sexual content is a big issue. The only reason why people say the film doesn't have sexual content as a big issue is because younger children didn't get it. There is jokes about gays, having sex, sleeping together, and more raunchy material for a PG-13. The profanity in here is a big problem. Almost every second there is a kid or adult swearing. Now the biggest issue is the social behavior. Kids talking to grandpa's tell them to shut up, be quiet, that he's an idiot. It's not good.
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
BWAHAHA
This movie's a classic. Totally poking fun at the NASCAR community/rednecks, but all in good fun. There are some "swear words" but nothing you wouldn't hear at the friendly neighborhood Wal-Mart. Some sexual content may concern some mothers, may excite some sons. ;) Excellent movie all in all
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title off for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
A good comedy movie.
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I rate this title off for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
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