Roku’s Weird Al movie is ridiculous in the best possible ways

Image: Roku

The opening scene of The AlYankovic Story features a shirtless Daniel Radcliffe in a hospital demanding a pencil and paper from Lin-Manuel Miranda. From there, things get weirder. The movie is more of a parody of biopics than the life story of the parody singer. Weird is similar to Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story in that it is about a real person. I think I know a lot of things that aren't true after watching it. It's fitting for a guy who writes absurd lyrics over popular songs to take a popular idea and make it equally absurd. I couldn't believe how much I laughed during Weird, the same way that I can't believe when "Amish Paradise" gets stuck in my head.

The movie follows the usual path. We start with humble beginnings, move to the top of our game, and suffer through the tragic fall from grace before hitting the end. The filmmakers don't want to tell you what's real or fake because almost everything is made up.

The accordion is turned into a defiant act of rebellion by the man. His father, a stern man who works at a dangerous factory, called musical parodies "evil" and Al's instrument of choice was the devil's squeeze box. An older man is arrested by the cops after he snuck out to perform at a high school party. The movie starts to get ridiculous when we meet adult Weird Al, played by Radcliffe.

He is on the cover of every magazine and has broken almost every sales record in the industry. He becomes the biggest star in the world and other pop stars want him for parodies. At a party with everyone from Andy Warhol to Pee-wee Herman, Dal exclaimed thatWeird Al will change the world. To give you a sense of how strange things can get, there is an LSD trip through hell, a life-changing romance with Madonna, and a retcon on the beginnings of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" The film comes up with a lot of different origin stories for songs like "My Bologna" and "Like a Surgeon." It ends with a fake origin for the song.

The film is committed to the little things. The musical biopic formula is exactly what it is, but the degree of absurdity just keeps expanding to the point that it doesn't feel like it's out of place. It's an ideal fit for a music biopic because of the seriousness of the role played by Radcliffe. He narrates with a deep voice reminiscent of classic movie trailers and somehow manages to turn the iconography into a sexy ensemble. Weird Al is getting hotter. I would like to watch it again to see who I missed. I won't ruin the surprises.

I think I don't want a true-to-life story about Weird Al's life anyways. Weird isn't a success because it gives me a glimpse into the tortured life of a brilliant artist. It is a success because it is the most extreme and strange send-up of music biopics yet, one that uses a real life figure to make those goofy and definitely not true moments hit even harder.

The AlYankovic Story is going to be on the channel. There was a screening at the Toronto International Film Festival.