DUKES OF HAZZARD

REVIEWED BY SHANNON H.

Our rating: 2 out of 5

Because of: sexuality, language

Rated:

The Dukes of Hazzard was one of those shows that seemed to stereotype Southerners and rednecks and still managed to bring a smile to the viewer's face. Bo and Luke Duke getting into some kind of mess involving Boss Hogg and his partner Roscoe P. Coltrane (along with second banana Deputy Enos Strate) is the setting for almost every episode. Some twenty-five years later, a film is made about it.

Bo Duke (Seann William Scott) and his cousin Luke Duke (Johnny Knoxville) are a couple of college-age guys who like to cruise around in their orange car, the General Lee. They live with their Uncle Jesse (Willie Nelson) and their other cousin, Daisy Duke (Jessica Simpson). All of them are in the moonshine business, making it and distributing it among their neighbors. Unfortunately, word of their illegal bootlegging gets to a corrupt sheriff, Roscoe P. Coltrane (M.C. Gainey) and Jefferson Davis "Boss" Hogg (Burt Reynolds). The two of them plant a moonshine-making device in their barn and accuse the Dukes of bootlegging. As a result, Coltrane and Hogg take their barn and farm, leaving them to stay with a family friend. It doesn't take long for the Duke boys to figure out what's going on.

On top of that, Bo Duke's beloved General Lee is trashed just days before the annual automobile race (a race he's won for four years straight). With a little investigation, Bo and Luke find out about a plan by Boss Hogg to strip mine Hazzard County for coal. Using their beautiful cousin Daisy as bait, the Duke boys manage to get their General Lee from the repair shop and try to evade authorities (since Sheriff Coltrane ordered the car to be impounded) and try to make it to the courthouse to voice their opposition to the strip mine issue. There's only one problem: it's on the same day as the Saturday car race and they have to make there by noon.

This film is rated PG-13 for good reason. Profanity is moderate: no f-words but the s-word is used occasionally, as well as abuses of deity. The Duke boys end up smoking pot unexpectedly but they are uncomfortable about the experience. Jessica Simpson as Daisy Duke is a joke: her performance is almost a cameo appearance and she's seen wearing EXTREMELY short shorts and baring her midriff. In one scene, she seduces Deputy Enos in a skimpy bathing suit. On two occasions, she takes off her top in order to get "help" from authorities to "fix her car" (merely a ploy to help the Duke boys escape) which reveals her bra. Luke Duke is seen carousing with a woman (both are clothed). In another scene, Bo and Luke are seen carousing with two women in General Lee. Bo confides to Luke that he wants to have sexual relations with his car (Luke gives him a funny look). There are references abound to sex, such as incest between cousins (a typical Southern stereotype) and one reference to homosexuality. Bo and Luke visit a college sorority where they encounter several young women wearing lingerie. Three women are seen coming out of the shower wearing nothing but a towel. A couple of people flip the bird to the Duke boys while in a traffic jam.

Christian content is non-existent in this film except for when Bo Luke claims that Jesus guides his life in order to cover for Luke, who is having sex with another man's girlfriend. This film does the TV series a disservice. Boss Hogg was not as corrupt as Burt Reynolds, Uncle Jesse wasn't a dirty old hippie as portrayed by singer Willie Nelson, and no one hardly ever uttered any foul language. The Duke boys are constantly evading the police through car chases and even manage to get out of a squad car thanks to Daisy distracting the officers with her body. This isn't the Dukes of Hazzard I remember.

I liked the thrill aspect of the film, as well as some of the humor, but it's just not true to the TV series and is far too obsessed with sex to suit my taste. It seems to exaggerate Southern stereotypes: that "rednecks" like to drink beer, pick fights, are uneducated, and go for pencil-thin women in skimpy outfits. If you're a fan of the TV show, skip this film and get the series on DVD. It's funny but not worth the $7 matinee price. One of the few good parts is the music; though listening to Willie Nelson sing the opening theme song is quite awkward.

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