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The Dukes of Hazzard (film)

The Dukes of Hazzard is a 2005 American action comedy film loosely based on the television series of the same name. The film was directed by Jay Chandrasekhar and released on August 5, 2005, by Warner Bros. Pictures. As in the television series, the film depicts the adventures of cousins Bo, Luke, and Daisy, and their Uncle Jesse, as they outfox crooked Hazzard County Commissioner Boss Hogg and Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane.

The Dukes of Hazzard

John O'Brien

  • John O'Brien
  • Jonathan L. Davis

Characters
by Gy Waldron

  • August 5, 2005 (2005-08-05)

104 minutes

United States

English

$53 million[1]

$109.8 million[1]

The film was the acting debut of pop singer Jessica Simpson. While financially successful with an opening debut of 30 million and a worldwide gross of $109.8 million, the film met with generally negative reviews from critics. The film was followed by a direct-to-video prequel titled The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning (2007).

appears as Bill Pullman's son Jimmy, in a car chase scene in which he accidentally shoots the inside of his father's truck.

Steve Lemme

Jay Chandrasekhar and reprise their roles as Ramathorn and Rabbit from the Broken Lizard comedy Super Troopers. The characters are now campus police officers, who warn the Duke boys for driving too slowly.

Erik Stolhanske

appears as TV newsman Rick Shakely reporting from the Hazzard Road Rally.

Paul Soter

appears as Royce Wilson, a dimwitted geology student who assists the Duke boys with the coal samples.

Charlie Finn

Production[edit]

Stunts[edit]

Knoxville said he was initially reluctant to take on the role, but was persuaded by script changes and the presence of Dan Bradley as stunt coordinator and second unit for the car chase scenes. Knoxville praised him, saying, "everyone in Hollywood wants Dan Bradley to shoot their car stuff".[4]

Locations[edit]

Principal photography for the film began on November 15, 2004,[5] before wrapping up the following February. The majority of the film was shot in and around Clinton & French Settlement, Louisiana. The Boar's nest was Moonlight Inn located in French Settlement, LA. The street scenes are set in Atlanta, but filmed in the New Orleans Central Business District, and the university scenes were shot on the campus of Louisiana State University.

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

The film was number one at the box office its opening weekend and grossed $30.7 million on 3,785 screens.[6] It also had an adjusted-dollar rank of number 24 all-time for August releases.[7] The film eventually collected $109.8 million worldwide, although it was much less successful financially outside the United States.[1]

Critical reception[edit]

On Rotten Tomatoes, 14% of 168 reviews were positive. The website's consensus called the film "A dumb, goofy, and vacuous adaptation of a TV show where plot is simply an excuse to string together the car chases."[8] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 33% based on 36 reviews, indicating "Generally unfavorable reviews".[9] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B+" on scale of A to F.[10] Longtime fans of the original Dukes of Hazzard series were generally disappointed by the film.[11]


Roger Ebert gave the film one star, calling it a "lame-brained, outdated wheeze" and wondered if Burt Reynolds' part in the film is "karma-wise... the second half of what Smokey and the Bandit was the first half of".[12] Ebert also named it the second-worst film of the year and Richard Roeper named it the worst film of 2005.[13] Ebert also included the film on his most hated list.[14]


Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave it B+ grade and wrote: "It's trash, all right, but perfectly skewed trash -- a comedy that knows just how smart to be about just how dumb it is."[15]

Controversies[edit]

Before the release of this film, Warner Bros. reportedly paid $17.5 million to the producer of Moonrunners, the movie that inspired the television series.[16] This was soon followed by a claim from screenwriter Gy Waldron. The Hollywood Reporter reported that James Best, who portrayed Rosco P. Coltrane in the original series, filed suit in late July 2011 over royalties he was contracted to receive over spinoffs that "used his identity".[17]


Ben Jones, who played Cooter Davenport in the original series, criticized the film for its emphasis on sexual content, suggesting that the original series was more family-oriented and not as sexualized.[18] He called for fans of the television series to boycott the film "unless they clean it up before the August 5th release date."


Some have countered that the original series also contained sexual themes, primarily Catherine Bach's (Daisy Duke) much-displayed "short shorts" (which have become so ubiquitous in American culture that skimpy blue jean cutoff shorts are now often simply called "Daisy Dukes"). In a film review, a New York Daily News entertainment columnist said the movie's sex humor is "cruder" than the TV series, but that it is "nearly identical to the TV series in... its ogling of the posterior of cousin Daisy Duke."[19]


Although initially he commented that he enjoyed the new style of relationship between the movie versions of Bo and Luke, John Schneider, who played Bo Duke in the original series, was later asked if he saw the film and said: "My gosh... it was terrible! It wasn't Dukes. It was true to whatever it was; I just don't know what that was!"[20]


John Schneider has said that when he arrived at the premiere, Johnny Knoxville came up to him and apologised for how bad the film was. Schneider has also questioned why TV channels show the film but are not prepared to rerun the original series.

In the series, Bo and Luke Duke were on probation, and Jesse had quit moonshining to keep them out of prison. A frequent obstacle as the result of their probation was their inability to leave Hazzard County without the consent of Boss Hogg. In the film, the Dukes are still actively producing and distributing moonshine, and Bo and Luke freely travel to Atlanta.

Boss Hogg and Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane are portrayed as far more serious and sinister than their TV counterparts. In the series, Hogg was very opposed to violence and would often abandon schemes if any characters were put in harm's way. In the film, Hogg has Jesse and Pauline (an original character) held hostage in one scene, and pays for an annoying prisoner to be knocked unconscious in another.

When the series portrayed the origins of the General Lee, the car immediately showcased its iconic design. In the opening of the film, the design of the General is rather different, with a crudely-styled 01 on the doors and missing the Confederate flag and name above the windows. When Cooter restores the General after it is vandalized by Boss Hogg's associates, the classic design is applied.

In most of the series, the Hazzard County Police Department is limited to Sheriff Coltrane and one deputy. (Enos or Cletus) In the film, the police department seems to be rather extensive for a small town.

In the series, Luke was a former Sergeant of the . This is not mentioned in the film. Contrarily, in the film, Jesse is introduced as a Korean War veteran, though the series did not portray him as a veteran.

U.S. Marine Corps

Unrated cut[edit]

An unrated cut restored changes made to get a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America. The unrated cut was released on DVD, and included rated and unrated bonus features, including unrated deleted scenes and blooper scenes. This edition was not rated by the MPAA, and contained additional nudity, language, and violent driving stunts.[23]

Prequel[edit]

A prequel to the film, titled The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning, was released to television on March 4, 2007, and released to DVD on March 13, 2007.

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