David Spade has had a long and illustrious career as a stand-up comic. Spade first established himself as the 1990s' Gene Wilder, shining as Chris Farley's lightweight straight man in a series of physical comedies with sentimental overtones like "Tommy Boy" and "Black Sheep." Then, not long before Farley's death, he returned to his Saturday Night Live roots and resurrected his reputation as a cynical and straightforward comedian afraid to hurt none a fly.
Spade's career, unfortunately, comes to a fork in the road with "Joe Dirt," a film in which he not only stars but also writes. The post-Farley Spade unsuccessfully attempts to prevail as the main character's insanely impractical ventures include assorted redneck jokes and related punch lines for Spade and company. However, an unnecessarily mawkish plotline surrounding Joe's love interest and his quest for "family" holds him down. The mix doesn't work.
Joe Dirt (David Spade) is born without the top of his hair, and the wig he wears to cover it up quickly becomes permanently attached to his head. I hope you find the one joke endlessly funny because the movie milks it from start to finish. Dirt's family abandons him at the Grand Canyon, and he spends the next 25 years of his life searching for them. Dirt encounters a motley crew along the way, including his lifelong girlfriend, Brandy (Brittany Daniel), with whom he is too naive to recognize a shared attraction; Clem (Christopher Walken), a school janitor; Kicking Wing (Adam Beach), a Native American firework vendor whom Dirt assists; an alligator trainer (Rosanna Arquette), and famous talk show host Zander K. Dirt uses Kelly's show as a platform to inform the nation about his strange life, which acts as the film's plot framework.
"Joe Dirt" is full of immature sight gags and bathroom sounds, which act as an ugly contrast to the semi-romantic storyline that the film tries to pawn the Dirt/Brandy relationship as. Furthermore, desperate comedies like "Joe Dirt" lost their shock appeal and, therefore, their amusement value. The film's other redeeming feature is its delightful score. The film begins with Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama," and during, fantastic classic rock tunes by Eddie Money, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Ted Nugent, George Thorogood, The Doobie Brothers, Joe Walsh, Cheap Trick, and Blue Oyster Cult often overshadow scenes.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it," Yogi Berra once said. With "Joe Dirt," Spade comes to a fork in the road and, unfortunately, he doesn't know which way to go.
