Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (2022)

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story is special because it treats the music biopic like a balloon animal—twisting every familiar rise-and-fall cliché into something gleefully, confidently ridiculous, while still feeling made with real affection for its subject. Daniel Radcliffe commits so hard to the bit that the performance becomes its own punchline, anchoring the film’s nonstop parade of absurdity with a straight-faced charm that makes the jokes land even harder. The vibe is buoyant, anarchic, and good-natured, the kind of comedy that keeps topping itself until you’re laughing at the sheer audacity of it all. If you want a reverent, factual cradle-to-grave biography, look elsewhere—but if you’re in the mood for an entertaining parody that celebrates Weird Al by being as weird as possible, this is a delight.

Weird: The Al Yankovic Story is trying to be a biopic that gleefully refuses to be a biopic, turning Al’s “life story” into a straight-faced parody of fame myths and music-movie clichés. If you love relentless absurdity and a joke-every-minute approach, it can be a blast, but the humor can start to feel repetitive as it goes on, and the second half often plays like a string of sketches rather than a movie with momentum. The pacing and filmmaking are serviceable at best, so if you’re hoping for a tighter narrative or anything resembling a sincere portrait, you’ll likely find it grating rather than clever. Still, Daniel Radcliffe’s commitment and the film’s commitment to its own nonsense are genuine strengths—just know it’s more “how far can we push this joke” than “here’s the real Weird Al.”