Delta Farce (PG-13) ★½

Review Date: June 1st, 2007

It's everything you'd expect from a lame comedy called Delta Farce, featuring three dopes in army gear on the movie poster.

Story

If there's one positive thing about Delta Farce is that is actually follows a tried and true comedy formula-- namely the fish-out-of-water scenario—with moderate success. Down on his luck after losing his job and his girlfriend on the same day, Larry (of the Cable Guy variety) decides to join his neighbor, Bill (Bill Engvall), and his combat-happy buddy, Everett (DJ Qualls), for a relaxing weekend of playing army. But when the three unlucky guys are mistaken for Army Reservists, they're loaded onto an army plane headed for Iraq--and mistakenly ejected in a Humvee somewhere over Mexico. Don't ask. Convinced they're actually in the Middle East, the clueless wannabe soldiers turn into Magnificent Seven meets the Three Amigos and save a rural village from a siege of bandits, proving to be real heroes after all.

Acting

If you need to laugh at the war on terror, you might as well do it with Larry the Cable Guy. He serves up his particular brand of comedy, making light of a bad situation. In fact, not only does he come off somewhat sympathetically as the hapless boob with a heart of gold, he also gets the hot chick at the end of the movie. Go, Larry! As his accomplice, fellow stand-up Bill Engvall follows his own comic routine, playing a hen-pecked trailer trash denizen who views this adventure as a great way to escape his overbearing wife and snotty kids. As the third doofus, DJ Qualls (Hustle & Flow) plays a trigger-happy wannabe jarhead, who sees this opportunity as a way to gain some street cred. And in a supporting role, Danny Trejo, a Robert Rodriguez regular, pokes fun at his scary looks as the leader of the marauding bandits, aptly named Carlos Santana. Yes, the jokes are plenty.

Direction

Director C.B.Harding is obviously a Larry the Cable Guy crony since his only other feature film credit is the Blue Collar Comedy Tour movie. Honestly, all that's really required of him is to point and shoot, with maybe a few action sequences to coordinate here and there. But while the formula works as a cohesive movie, having to sit through Delta Farce's comic stylings is the tricky part. What it really boils down to is whether you're a fan of Larry the Cable Guy. If so, you'll (I would hope) realize you're watching a pretty stupid comedy but will laugh in the appropriate parts. If not, I would really wonder what the heck you are doing sitting in the theater.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 1 1/2 stars.