Everything that is funny -- or even slightly amusing -- happens within the first 20 minutes of the film. The rest of the movie relies on remounting these jokes with a slight spin to keep it afloat, which quickly grew old with the audience. There was audible sighing every time Dewey's father said "The wrong boy died!". Jokes on Dewey Cox's name occur at least 100 times. Other gags that fall flat include breaking the third wall to make jokes about how the actors do not look the age that they are supposed to be playing. The joke fell flat, with very little laughter from the audience. Different variations of that same joke was repeated on multiple occasions with even less laughter from the audience each time.

John C. Reilly's performance plays like Dewey Cox was written for Will Ferrell. In fact, Reilly's accent seems like an impersonation of Ferrell doing an impersonation of George W. Bush. Unfortunately, Reilly's funniest moments in this movie are not even on par with Ferrell's worst moments.

The supporting cast was also weak. A lot of Saturday Night Live players showed up, but act exactly like they would on a sketch. Kristen Wiig, who plays Dewey's first wife, is over-the-top and shrill. There's a small bright spot in Dewey's second wife played by Jenna Fischer, but she's not enough to save the train wreck.

When all else fails, tallying the cameo appearances can offer some relief. Justin Long, Jack Black, Paul Rudd and Jason Schwartzman appear as The Beatles. Lyle Lovett, Jewel, and Ghostface Killah sing a remix of Dewey Cox's song "Walk Hard." The Temptations, Eddie Vedder and Jackson Browne also appear. The only cameo that brought anything funny to the movie was that of Jonah Hill, who plays the ghost of Dewey's older brother.

The movie could've easily had about 30 minutes cut from it, reducing the repeating jokes and moving past the scenes that Reilly did not perform as well as other actors could have.

This movie will have a built-in audience of people expecting a decent, funny Judd Apatow-produced movie. Be warned: This isn't "Superbad' or "The 40 Year Old Virgin" or even not-so-funny, but still decent "Knocked Up." It's a completely different style and while it may hark back to an old David Zucker film like "Airplane" or "Police Squad" - it's not anywhere near the quality of those movies.

"Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" opens today nationwide. It is written by Judd Apatow and Jake Kasdan. Jake Kasdan also directs. It is rated R.